Heartbeat Slowing Down
by amycc7
Summary: AU; Hook delays the curse. 20 years later, the Enchanted Forest is falling into turmoil, but all Emma wants is chance to end the death threats and figure out why magic is suddenly manifesting inside of her. Opportunity arrives when she strikes a deal with Hook, but inevitable changes are coming and Emma begins to see that while the curse may be escapable, the final battle isn't.
1. Chapter One

Hey everyone! This is a story idea I had when I was thinking about whether or not Emma and Hook would have met or become Captain Swan if something had happened with the curse, and it all came together after watching the Queen of Hearts episode. I have to say I was a little surprised Hook acted so nonchalant about Regina's curse, at least until Cora told him it would take away their memories, but even then he didn't seem to think it was a big deal that all the land would be destroyed. I know he really wants his revenge but Regina's curse destroyed entire worlds. But I don't know, maybe that is not that surprising for him. So in my story, he takes the idea of sending Rumplestiltskin to a land without magic, thinking he can just do it himself, and tries delays the curse until he accomplishes his revenge, for various reasons. I hope that makes sense! I have alot planned for this story and there's going to be alot more too it than just the revenge plot so I hope you like it and please tell me what you think! If it sucks, please tell me and I'll change it/get rid of it/whatever.

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Chapter One

**Emma**

"Emma, I'm still not sure about this." The blonde standing beside Emma hesitated as they finally broke through the wooded clearing that led to a local village pub. The sun had been down for a couple of hours and noisy chatter, laughter, and cries from drunken men could already be heard from inside the building as they approached.

"Relax." Emma sighed as she glanced over and noticed how uncomfortable Alexandra looked in pants. Maybe bringing Alexandra here hadn't been the best idea, but she had been begging Emma to take her do something that had nothing to do with palace life for weeks. "You'll be fine."

Alexandra gritted her teeth, her dark blue eyes flickering over to Emma in annoyance. "It is not just myself that I am concerned about."

Emma had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "You know I've done this hundreds of times," It was true. Her parents weren't the traditional type of royalty. Her father taught her sword-fighting and horseback riding; her mother taught her tracking and bowing. They encouraged her independence and let her explore the kingdom as she chose. Emma knew there was a deeper meaning with Alexandra's words though. While she loved her parents, there were many people still seeking to destroy their happiness and being the only child of Snow White and Prince Charming made her a very popular target. It was something she was used to, however, and it was something she didn't want to have to think about tonight. Besides, she knew how to defend herself. "I don't exactly spend my down time lounging around the castle."

"I'm going to ignore the fact that you looked right at me when you said that," Alexandra stated with a defiant finger in the air, "I'm just saying that with as many powerful people as you have wanting to… _harm_ you, it's not wise to go strutting about the entire kingdom like you're untouchable." She started thrashing her hands in the air for dramatic effect. "Regina's already gotten close before, _too_ close…"

Emma blanched. She did not just say that. "And I'm never making that mistake again." Snapping, Emma crossed her arm and fought to push back the memories that threatened to surface and ruin her night. Not tonight. Not tonight. Not again.

Eyes going wide, Alexandra immediately softened and tried to reach out a comforting hand. "Don't say that…"

"Besides," Emma moved away from her. As she uncrossed her arms, she tried her best to embody a calm, uncaring demeanor, "that whole," She paused, looking for the right word. Betrayal? Surprise? Near death experience? "Event… proved that they can't really-"

Alexandra cut her off. "There are other ways to kill someone." Her voice was surprisingly calm.

"I know what I'm doing." The statement had came out harsher than Emma had intended it to and she could see the hurt bubbling up in Alexandra's face. But she couldn't help it. She was just so annoyed at everyone always being concerned about her. Yes, it was nice knowing people cared. What annoyed her was the fact that she didn't know why they cared; whether it be because she was Snow and Charming's daughter and they were loyal to them, or because they believed that Regina would still cast her curse someday and they still saw her as the savior. With the exception of her parents, it sometimes felt like nobody really knew or really cared about _her_. For as much as she was always surrounded by people, Emma still felt alone. Alexandra's groan of frustration broke Emma out of her thoughts.

"God forbid it, but Emma," Alexandra's voice was slowing rising, "one of these days you're bound to slip up."

Emma's green eyes narrowed; her nose was flaring in anger. "I won't." No, she wouldn't. And if she ever saw Regina, or him, again, there would be hell to pay.

There was a tense silence as both girls stared off in opposite directions, neither one wanting to be the one that caved. Finally, Alexandra sighed deeply and put her hands down in defeat. She looked over at Emma apologetically. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought up-"

"It's fine." Emma told her, voice terse. She awkwardly fumbled with the end of her sleeve, never having been good with the whole sharing thing. "Look, you're the one who always begs me to take her with me next time I come here."

"I know. It's just now that I'm here," with an amused grin settling on her face, Alexandra pointed over at the pub, "it looks a lot more intimidating than I thought it would be."

Emma felt herself smirk. "Well, it's a good thing you've got an expert pub crawler with you."

Alexandra linked arms with Emma and started to move forward with an exaggerated brave face, deadpanning. "I'm somehow not comforted."

"Follow my lead." Emma stopped and gave her a look of warning, "And don't tell anyone who you are." Stopping again suddenly, Emma added. "And if they do recognize you, just deny it."

"C'mon! Give me a little credit." Alexandra rolled her dark blue eyes and pushed Emma through the door.

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**Hook**

Hook smiled to himself as he saw the two blondes finally walk into the pub.

He had been watching the shorter, more fragile looking one for days now. Princess Alexandra. He had been studying her patterns, hoping an opportunity would present itself where he could corner her without having any palace guards within ten feet of him. But the girl never left the walls of her castle, until tonight. Sporting beaten up clothes vastly different than her normal attire, he followed her as she traveled across the kingdom, meeting up with a striking blonde along the way in the forest, before heading to a dirty old pub. Odd, that a princess would choose to find company here; this only led him to assume that the young woman she accompanied was not any form of royalty. His eyes unconsciously shifted to her but looking the girl over only puzzled him more. Sure, while her clothing was worn down and she certainly looked comfortable in this type of environment, there was still an air of dignity radiating from her movements and her features were regal. Hook had already noticed that she was beautiful, but in the light he could see that with her golden blonde hair messily pulled back into a knot and a little dirt smudged on her face, she was almost trying _too_ hard to appear less than she seemed. So maybe she was –

He mentally stopped himself. He shouldn't be wasting his time or energy trying to figure out the random blonde when he should be focusing on the princess who could finally be the key to his revenge. But he wasn't about to get his hopes up. Not just yet anyway. Hook thought he was finally getting his wish some time ago when he had heard about a woman who had spent more time with Rumplestilskin than anyone had before. While she had been useless, it had led him to Regina. She told him of the curse she was planning on casting, one that would destroy the land and take them to a land without magic, a land that would strip Rumplestiltskin of his powers. It was the best news he'd had in years. The queen only had one task for him: to go to Wonderland and kill her mother. While taking a heart reminded him far too much of Milah and the cowardice of Rumplestiltskin, he told himself that it had to be done. That if this was the only way to get his revenge, he would have to get over it. So with a dead guard in tow, he made his way to Wonderland. Things went south, however, when he learned not only could Cora's heart not be taken, the curse would erase their memories entirely. Cora spared his life, demanding that he take her back and pretend he had killed her so she could rip out her own daughter's heart like she had wanted Hook to do to her. He agreed, but then Cora didn't kill her daughter. The curse was still going to happen. To say that he was extremely annoyed at the antics of the women would be an understatement; they were treating him like some errand boy and dragging him into their warped familial issues. Cora insisted that her preparations would allow them to be protected from the curse, but the all the lands would still be destroyed and even after he got to kill Rumplestiltskin, everyone, including himself, would still be stuck in a land without magic. A land he was still having trouble imagining. And if there was anything he had learned throughout the years, it was never trust pixies and never trust witches. Fuming, Hook started to conduct his own plans. He would stop or delay the curse until he found a way to get Rumplestiltskin to a land without magic on his own to kill him. He remembered Regina didn't want to cast her curse if her mother was alive. When he and Cora traveled back to Wonderland to finalize the preparations, with the help of a companion, they managed to escape Wonderland without Cora and find out what could stop Regina's curse: the heart of thing she loved most. So that's what he did. With his enchanted hook, he took the heart of Regina's father; Hook grabbed the hat too and escaped back to Neverland wanting to get as far away as Regina as possible. His companion from Wonderland had already told him that the hat only carried portals to magical lands, but within these magical lands, he could look for other portals. Since then, Hook hadn't had any luck so far and had been biding his time in Neverland when he heard a rumor that Rumplestiltskin had been caught and successfully imprisoned when a deal with Cinderella over a baby had gone awry, but then later escaped. He could see his plan coming together. He would find out how they managed to trap Rumplestiltskin, at least for a short while, and once he the right portal, he would trap Rumplestiltskin himself and send him to the land without magic to kill him.

While coming back to the Enchanted Forest was not ideal, he would just have to lay low and if Smee's assessments about Regina were true, avoid mirrors. After watching King Thomas and his wife Cinderella, Hook decided that the daughter was the easier target and best chance of getting the information he needed. So here he was, observing them from a far corner in the pub waiting for the right moment to strike, which would have to be soon. Hook could already see how most of the men starting staring and following them with their eyes as soon as they walked in. Two blondes. A dangerous combination. And as the more enigmatic blonde left to make her way to the bar, he haughtily smirked and moved to approach the princess now sitting all alone.

* * *

**Emma**

"Wait here." Emma had to shout over the noise to make sure Alexandra could here. They had finally found an open table in the corner of the pub. "I'll go get us some drinks."

She was hesitant about leaving Alexandra there alone, but Emma knew the rowdy men that tended to float around the bar in order to have easier access to the beer would probably eat her alive. Emma froze momentarily, however, when she saw the back of a very familiar figure. She should have known. "Grumpy?"

The dwarf turned to her with an impish grin on his face. "It's not exactly a surprise, is it?"

"No." Emma admitted before getting the barmaid's attention and ordering two pints. "But I was hoping that since Alexandra was with me my parents would lay off the 'secret' security detail for tonight."

"You really think that having Princess Alexandra tag along with ya makes ya any more inconspicuous?" Grumpy rebutted incredulously as he took a sip of his drink.

Emma thought of Alexandra's tendency to want to be recognized publicly and her eager involvement in all aspects of being royalty. Unlike Alexandra, Emma tended to shy away from court life and doubted an ordinary villager could pick her out of a lineup. "Point taken."

"I'll just be sitting here, doing my own thing," His familiar glower washed over his face, "like always."

"Thanks," Emma sighed. She grabbed the two pints of beer in front of her and headed back to where Alexandra. Halfway there, she noticed there was someone else at their table. It was a very attractive man with black hair already talking animatedly with Alexandra. That was her first clue. No decent man of social standing came here of his own free will. Emma narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she approached the table.

Alexandra looked up at her brightly when she returned. "You're back!"

"Two blondes," The man gave her a devilish grin as he looked her up and down, "It must be my lucky day."

Up close, Emma could see that he was indeed very good-looking. His clear blue eyes sharply contrasted with his black hair and clothes and the stubble on his face definitely gave him an extra appeal. There was just something about him though, in the way he was presenting himself, the way his voice struggled to sound sincere, and the way his eyes showed that he was so clearly…

"Jones." Lying. Emma bit back the realization and continued to play along with whatever charade he was trying to pull. 'Jones' held out his hand to her, still grinning. "Pleasure to meet your acquaintance."

Emma looked down at his open hand briefly before looking back at him blankly, deadpanning, "Charmed, I'm sure." She noticed his left arm that was held at his side, unmoved. Raising an eyebrow, she brashly asked, "What happened to your hand?"

"Emma!" Alexandra sounded positively scandalized. Emma wanted to groan. Whoever this man was, he already had Alexandra fooled.

"Don't fret on my account, my dear," Jones told her reassuringly before giving her a flirty glance. He turned back to Emma and there seemed to be something different in his eyes this time when he looked at her, "it's nothing I don't care to explain." But it quickly faded. After a dramatic pause, Jones gave a devastated sigh, looking between them heartbreakingly. "It was crushed when I tried to save a child on a runaway horse. I was given two options," He suddenly raised two fingers and Emma could hear Alexandra give out a small, audible gasp from the surprise of it, "chop it… or live in agony for the rest of my life."

Alexandra eyes were wide and she put a comforting hand on his arm; Emma almost couldn't contain her eye-roll. "I'm so sorry."

"I'm not." Jones turned to Alexandra, a small smile playing on his lips, his bright blue eyes turning distant, seemingly looking at something neither of them could see, "It was worth it to see the look on that mother's face when I put her child back in her arms."

This was too much. Who did this guy think he was? The distant stare, the forced dramatics in his voice, the feigned bravado… No one actually talked like that and coming from him, Emma was finding it increasingly amusing. So much so, she couldn't stop the smirk from forming on her face.

And apparently Jones noticed. His eyes finally showed some real emotion: annoyance. And it crept into his voice, no matter how hard he was trying to hide it. "Is there something amusing about my tale?"

Emma coughed, hoping to get control of her inner laughter. She tried to feign innocence. "Nope."

Alexandra glared at her, trying to get Emma to look at her, but Emma stubbornly refused and started to down her drink. She had to think of an excuse to get out of here and away from the con that was Jones, who, at the moment, started to speak to her. He nodded his head over at the bar. "Why is that dwarf I saw you talking to at the bar keep looking over here? Jealous boyfriend, perhaps?"

From the smugness in his face she could tell he was hoping that this would somehow push her buttons. Ow. What a burn.

Emma took another sip of her drink before simply replying "Client."

At her response, Jones unattractively snorted into the drink he had been taking, causing him to start choking and coughing.

Alexandra's nervous eyes widened in horror that Emma would present herself as a harlot. "She's joking."

At that, Emma stood up with a commanding posture. 'We've got to go.'

"What?" Alexandra immediately protested. "Why?"

Emma cleared her throat, trying to buy time to think of a plausible excuse. She pointed toward the door and gave out an awkward chuckle. "I have that thing."

Narrowing suspicious her eyes at her, Alexandra crossed her arms. "What thing?"

"Yes, please do share." Jones added in, his voice still somewhat hoarse from his coughing fit.

She could feel Jones's stare burning a hole in her face. He knew that she knew that he was lying. But some spark in his eyes made it seem like he was almost challenging her to play along. Don't look at him. Don't look at him. Emma turned to give Alexandra a very pointed look, her voice coming out low and through her gritted teeth. "That thing I was talking to you about earlier."

Comprehension started to dawn on Alexandra's face but as she glanced again at Jones, Emma could see she was still a little torn. "We just got here." Her disappointed voice offered again.

"You can stay here with me, lass." Jones enthusiastically offered, moving his arm around to rest on the back of Alexandra's chair. He then turned to Emma, a smirk forming on his lips and his eyes casting a wicked gleam. "I'll see to it she gets home safe."

Emma felt her insides start to burn with anger. She was done trying to play along. "She's not going anywhere with you." She reached across and forcibly grabbed Alexandra's arm, dragging her toward the door, not looking back. "Let's go."

"I'm sorry." Alexandra shouted apologetically at him before they got too far away. Trying to make their way through the crowd, she moved closer to Emma, harshly whispering in her ear. "Emma, what's wrong? He wasn't like any of the other cretins in here. He was charming and – "

"Exactly." Emma muttered. She glanced over at the bar and saw Grumpy still sitting up there, not noticing they had made their way to the door to leave. "I've got to tell Grumpy we're leaving, I'll meet you outside."

Seeing Alexandra nod in agreement, Emma quickly pushed her way up to where he was sitting. "We're leaving."

"Not having fun with Mr. Fancy Face over there?" Grumpy begrudgingly mumbled before he took a sip of his beer.

Emma shrugged and then sighed defeatingly. So much for a fun night out. "He was lying through his teeth."

"Typical." The dwarf spit before holding up his still half-full pint to Emma. "I'm still working on my beer. You think you can make it back on your own?" Scoffing, Emma widened her green eyes and stared at him incredulously. "Snow and Charming would have my head if I didn't at least offer." Grumpy barked as he knowingly pointed a finger at her.

Rolling her eyes, Emma just mumbled "I'll see you later" as she headed toward the exit. As she walked out into the cold night air, Emma had a gut feeling that something was wrong. There was not a soul in site, creating an eerie silence. After a moment, though, scuffling noises reached her left ear. Emma tensed her stance and crept around to peak into the alleyway next to the pub. Her eyes widened in horror at the event unfolding before her. The man from inside, Jones, or whoever the hell he really was, had a whimpering Alexandra pinned up against the back wall. His back turned to her, Emma reached down to grab the customary knife that resided inside her boot and silently moved toward them determinately.

"I don't know anything about him!" Alexandra pleaded, her dark blue eyes swimming with fear and unshed tears.

Jones pushed down on her neck with his forearm even harder. "I know your parents were involved with locking him up, Princess. Now tell me how they did it."

"I don't know!"

"This is your last chance before I kill you," Jones whispered harshly, "How did your parents manage to capture Rumplestiltskin?"

Rumplestiltskin? Emma paused for a millisecond as she registered the name and realized that Rumplestilskin had been in the dungeon of her castle but she had more important matters to deal with. "Wrong princess." She spat at him as she came up behind him, holding the knife to his throat. "Now let her go."

"Bested by a princess," Jones humorlessly chuckled as he carefully lowered him arms from Alexandra. "Definitely a first." His blue eyes glanced at her, giving her a warning that he was slowly turning around. "Now how about you put that knife down before you poke your eye out?"

Jones moved slightly forward, thinking she didn't have the guts or to try to intimidate her but Emma held her stance as she stared him down with disdain. Her knife only moving slightly closer to his throat and for the first time, she saw a wariness enter his eyes as he glanced down at the knife. Good. The smugness was practically radiating off of her. "Please."

"Now tell me," Jones casually asked as he rolled his lips together. His rimmed blue eyes narrowed at Emma. "Exactly which princess are you?"

Emma ignored him and looked back at Alexandra. "Go inside and get Grumpy." Jones made no move to stop her, continuing to send Emma a withering glare, but his arm moved slightly. Distracted by the movement, Emma glanced down and saw a gleaming silver hook attached that had down been there before. "Hook." She whispered as a memory tried to surface. Hook, yes. She knew there was something important that happened that had to with him…

"Ah, so you've heard of me." Hook smirked boastingly. His sudden movement toward her broke Emma out of her mental shuffling and she swiftly blocked the hook that was coming down at her with her knife. Laughing slightly at both of their weapons, Hook raised his eyebrows at her. He gleamed down at her wickedly. "Well, this should be interesting."

Moving with experience, Emma blocked two more blows before they started circling each other. "Not bad for a princess." Hook told her, but Emma could still hear some amusement in his voice, which started to piss her off even more than she already was. Acting on impulse, she charged at him, hoping maybe that it would catch him off guard. Hook dodged her at the last second and managed to throw her to the ground, causing her knife to fall out of her hand. Emma tried to grab it but Hook grabbed her by her ankle, dragging her toward him. And before he had her turned around, Emma saw a new weapon. An unopened glass bottle lying on the ground; she managed to snatch it and hide it behind her back as Hook deftly picked her up and pinned her to the wall.

"Ready to surrender?" Hook breathed as he smirked triumphantly at her. Then adding on scathingly knowing it would piss her off "_Princess_."

Emma leaned toward him and matched the smirk he wore. "You wish." She replied with a determined air before bringing the bottle around and smashing it on the top of his head as hard she could. Hook looked at Emma, stunned, but within seconds, his eyes glazed over and he tumbled to the ground. She stared down at him and let out a calming, deep breath before she turned and could see Grumpy and Alexandra rushing toward her.

Grumpy ran up to her anxiously and she could see relief wash over his face when he saw Hook passed out on the ground. It was soon replaced, however, with an angry glower. "What happened?"

Holding up her hand, Emma showed him part of the glass bottle she used before throwing it to the ground. "I knocked him out. Probably not for long, though. Let's get out of here."

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Please review! Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter Two

Hey everyone, thank you so much for all the kind reviews! You seriously don't know just how much I appreciate it and thanks to everyone who read too! This chapter turned out way longer than I thought it would so I decided to take off some of the end and save it for the next one, so if you think it cuts off rather quickly, that's why. Also, this name of this fic does get its name from the All-American Rejects Song 'Heartbeat Slowing Down' which I first heard at their concert a couple of weeks ago and it was brilliant so you just go listen :) Thanks for reading and please leave a review if you can!

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**CHAPTER TWO**

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Emma tiredly drudged herself through the door of Red's home in the woods, reveling over all that had happened that night. She had been wracking her brain almost the entire walk back trying to figure out where she had heard Hook's name before… and why he possibly wanted to take on Rumplestiltskin. If it was revenge, then Emma knew it was only a matter a time before he tracked her down to get the information he now probably thought she had or to enact his own payback on her for smashing a glass bottle on his head. On the upside, Hook learned she was a princess, and where would most people look for a princess? A castle. So she would try to stay in the woods as long as she possible. No one would expect a princess to be here. Red's voice broke her out of her silent pondering.

"You're back early." Red smiled warmly as she walked into the main area, a blanket hanging over her arm. She looked around confused, expecting someone else to be there too. "Where's Alexandra?"

Shrugging, Emma sighed and threw herself down on the couch. "Turns out pub life isn't really for her."

"Shocker." Red snorted as she sat down beside her.

Emma made a throw away gesture with her hand before continuing hesitantly. "I had Grumpy escort her back to her castle."

"Why? What happened?" Eyeing her warily, Red's body tensed. She bolted up and reached for Emma's arms. "And why do I smell blood?"

"Red-" Emma groaned, trying to pull her arms closer to her body and away from inspection. She knew there were scratches on her arms from when she was thrown to the ground. After struggling with Red for a few moments, Emma finally gave up and let her look over her arms.

"Are you okay?" Red asked, noticeably calmer as she saw the blood was coming from just a few cuts on her forearms.

"I'm fine." Emma enunciated each syllable and cast her a very pointed 'back off' look. Red didn't flinch, continuing to stare at her until she got an explanation. Rolling her eyes, Emma tried to come up with a plausible story. If she told Red about Hook, Red would tell her mother, who would freak out knowing that there was yet _another_ person after her and probably start sending all seven dwarves with her wherever she went. That was the last thing she wanted. She hated people worrying over her. Didn't she prove time and time again that she could take care of herself? "This really drunk guy refused to leave Alexandra alone so when we tried to leave there might have been a scuffle, of sorts."

"Emma…" Red was still looking her over cautiously. Emma started glare at her incredulously before she finally waved her hand in the air in submission. "Okay fine. I'm going back to being the cool aunt. No more questions."

"Thank you." Emma breathed out, relieved. At hearing the word 'aunt,' a realization popped into Emma's head. Yes, she considered Red her aunt; being best friends with her mom, she would have been around if there was anytime Hook had been mentioned. Maybe she could still find out information about him without having to announce that he was most likely out for blood; her blood. She glanced at Red nervously, wringing her hands together and wondering how she could possibly bring Hook up without seeming suspicious.

"You look like you've got something else on your mind." Red noticed her tension and raised an eyebrow.

"I heard some men exchanging stories in the pub tonight and one of them mentioned a Captain Hook." Emma tried to laugh, hoping Red would think that even Emma thought it was silly she was asking, that she couldn't possibly have a reason she was randomly asking about a pirate. "And his name just sounded really familiar. I was hoping you would know why."

Red blinked in surprise. "Wow, I haven't heard that name in a while." She rolled her lips in concentration. "As far as you're concerned, you probably heard his name over the years because both Regina and Rumplestiltskin have a bounty out for him… and your parents always thought he had something to do with the curse not happening."

Floored, Emma sputtered out her next question without thinking. "Why would they think that?" So much for acting like it wasn't a big deal she was asking. She had to get it together. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Red to see if she had noticed her sudden outburst of eagerness but Red just continued on like nothing had happened.

"I don't know, just from things said over the years and rumors floating around. Who knows if any of its true." Red shrugged and then looked over at her with concern in her eyes. "I hope that helps."

"Yeah, it does." Emma sent her a reassuring smile and then got up to move before she could accidently say anything else stupid. "I'm going to go get cleaned up."

* * *

After spending three more days at Red's house, Emma knew she couldn't put off going home any longer. She had other responsibilities to attend to, and damn it, she wasn't going to let some bloody pirate make her skittish at the thought of traveling. Hopefully three days was enough for Hook to begin searching for her somewhere else or give up entirely. Something told her that was only wishful thinking, though.

She wouldn't go unarmed; like always, she had her bow slung on her back, her sword, a dagger, and then a knife in each boot. While extensive, the possibility of her being attacked was always very high, no matter what she was doing. Emma was used to having people try to kill her; which just sounded really sad the more she thought about it.

Little had happened in the beginning of her journey and Emma's hopes were just starting to come up when got a feeling she was already very accustomed to. The feeling of being watched. Emma hesitated slightly, but then continued to keep walking, waiting it out to see if it was her paranoia talking or if there really was someone out there. After a few more moments, she heard a twig snap. It was soft and she probably wouldn't have heard it if she wasn't paying attention or taught how to track. She slowed, going through her options: A) Hook – most likely; B) George – strong possibility but Emma doubted he had been watching her enough lately to know she was out here; C) Regina – least likely, sneaking around wasn't her style; D) A deer and she was really just letting paranoia get the best of her.

Well, better to be on the offensive than defensive, as Emma liked to think. She walked over to the nearest tree and leaned up against, pretending she had something wrong with her boot. She carefully pulled one of the knives out, not making her movements look too obvious. Maybe it was nothing, no need to whip out the sword just yet, and it sounded like one person, two at best. Yes, no need to get ahead of herself.

Feeling another presence, Emma whipped the knife and suddenly jumped around the tree. Sneak attack. Only there was no one there. Relieved, she slowly put her knife down. Emma guessed she really must be going crazy and started give out an embarrassed chuckle until –

"Over here, darling."

Emma let out what she would like to believe was a gasp, but knew came out as a squeal, and whipped around to see Hook standing there with a satisfied grin on his face and to have her knife quickly knocked out of her hand.

Unprepared, Hook grabbed her before she could pull out any of her other weapons. Doing her best to wrangle herself out of his grasp, Emma tried to push him into the tree. His grip loosed a little and when she lifter her fist to punch him, he blocked it, causing her fist to collide with the tree instead. She heard herself start to growl.

"You know, Princess" Hook huffed as they still continued to fight against each other. "I have to say, you've impressed me."

Somehow, Hook managed to grab her ankle with his hook and sent her tumbling to the ground. He landed on top of her, effectively pinning her arms to the ground. "Would – would you stop squirming." Hook spat out, annoyed. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Emma finally stilled and looked up at him indignantly. "Happy?"

"Quite." Hook grinned slyly.

"How the hell did you find me out here?" Emma asked, startled and out of breathe. She hoped that had to do with the fact that she been trying to fight against him and not because his face was dangerously close to hers right now and could make out all the shades of blue in his eyes.

"I had already been following your fellow princess Alexandra when she came to meet you in this area of the woods the other night." Hook smirked, obviously proud of himself. His eyes then turned upward for a split second, indicating to the area around them. "Plus, I also asked around about you. Your family is very popular among all the villagers. They seemed to have a few guesses where you might be. It turns out you don't blend in as much as you like to think you do, Princess."

When he was finally done, Emma deadpanned, "Thank you for that very detailed explanation." Condensing that into a simple 'I followed you' would have been fine for her. And adding his own opinion of her 'blending in' and the like, who did he think he was, Jiminy Cricket?

Hook narrowed his eyes playfully, pretending to be offended. "Someone's impatient."

"If you're going to continue spouting off your personal insights into my character," Emma muttered irritably, trying to get out from underneath him again, "Could we at least be, you know, standing up?"

After looking down at their situation, Hook began to smirk at her, his blue eyes radiating heat. "I'm rather enjoying having you this position."

"What do you want?" Emma groaned, rolling her eyes and doing her best to ignore how that look might have given her a butterfly. No, she would no let him affect her. She'd already told her heart she was done with men. Especially men who were supposed to be villainous.

"The same thing I wanted last night." He told her simply.

Emma sighed before admitting reluctantly "I don't know anything about how my parents caught Rumplestiltskin. All I know it that he was imprisoned in one of our cells."

Hook blinked, taken aback. "What?"

Her green eyes began to study him curiously. "What do you want with Rumplestiltskin anyway?"

"Revenge." Hook spit, his bright blue eyes turning stormy and dangerous in an instant.

Looking into his eyes, Emma could see that he was telling the truth and that behind the ruthlessness, there was pain. And Emma knew better than anyone what it was like to be in pain. She also knew that she was going to regret what she was about to say next. "Fine." She answered him quietly, "If I take you back to the castle with me and let you ask my parents yourself," Her voice turned back to its usual roughness, "Will you finally get the hell _off_ of me?"

Surprise washing over his features, Hook eyed her suspiciously. "And why should I trust that your parents would be willing to share any information with me?"

Emma raised an eyebrow at him. "You don't think they would like to see Rumplestiltskin gone as much as me, or everyone else?"

After a few more moments of quiet contemplation, Hook finally cracked a smile. "You have yourself a deal."

When Emma realized he still wasn't moving off of her, she started to feel the undoing of one of her belts. She immediately started to try kick him, her blood pressure rising. "What do you think you're doing?" Emma demanded.

"Don't get too excited." Hook sneered as she saw him now removing the other knife from her boot. "I'm just stripping you off your weapons."

Emma's green eyes widened in distress. "What?"

Hook removed her bow from her shoulder before finally getting up and moving to pick up her knife from the ground. He threw her a bemused glance. "Do you always travel with an armory?"

"I happen to have quite a few people after me." Emma snapped at him as she jumped up off the ground. "I've been attacked on this road before. How I am supposed to protect myself if something happens?"

Taking in their surroundings, Hook shrugged nonchalantly. "You've got me." He offered as his lips turned into his trademark smirk.

She glared at him, befuddled, before realization washed through her. Emma started laughing incredulously. "You don't believe me do you?"

"I just think that with the short amount of time it takes to get from here to where we need go," Hook rationalized but then his voiced turned mocking as he eyed her skeptically, "the most menacing adversaries we'll be facing will probably be a couple of bunnies."

"You're really just going to leave me defenseless?" Emma scoffed, still determined to get something. He might not believe her, but she knew that the moment you get attacked is when you're least expecting it.

Hook looked at her like she crazy. "With our current track record," His voice was rising with disbelief, "you really think I'm going to willingly hand over a weapon to you? A weapon that has a very high chance of being used on _me_?"

"You're the one that can't be trusted," Emma argues, consciously aware that her nostrils were now unattractively flaring. She started to exasperatedly sputter off reasons without even thinking, "you're a pirate, you tried to attack my friend last night, and for God's sake, you have a freaking _hook_ for a hand-"

"Fine!" Hook growled, obviously annoyed. "You can have your bloody sword if it means you'll quit being so bloody exhaustive."

"I don't guarantee anything." Emma sniffed hotly; unmoving; her arms crossed as she waited for Hook to give her back her weapon.

Hook sighed in resignation as he handed her back her belt that her sword still resting in its sheath. "It's a nice sword." He added, trying to lighten the mood.

Emma cast him a dark look as she attached her belt. "It used to be my father's." She mumbled before taking off toward the castle. "C'mon." Within a moment, however, she felt Hook's hand going down her back. She sprung forward at unusually fast speed, turning around to impound him with a leery glare. "What the hell!"

Hands in the air, Hook stared at her perplexingly. When she saw realization enter his eyes, his hand pointed in a downward motion before giving her a pathetic look. "You have leaves stuck to your back."

Not wanting Hook to see the embarrassment on her face, she turned away and attempted to brush them all off herself. When she had succeeded in removing them all, she heard Hook cough and warily add "and your hair."

"You couldn't have just told me that?" Emma half-yelled through gritted teeth as she combed the leaves out of her long blonde hair. She desperately hoped he thought that her face was turning red from anger and not mortification.

"I was trying to be a gentlemen." Hook countered, dismayed and exasperated, as they started to journey forward again.

Emma picked up her pace, trying to walk ahead of him. "Well, don't" She muttered and hoped that would be the end of any conversation.

Apparently, Hook was all for conversation and continued to ramble on to her. "It really is just such a lovely outfit." Emma glanced down at her tan riding pants and collared, long white cape, wondering where he was going with this. "I would hate to see it go to waste. Why couldn't you have worn something like this the other night? I'm finally starting to see some sort of semblance to a princess." Anger and annoyance coursing through her, Emma started to round and release fury on him only to turn and see Hook grinning at her with amusement coloring his eyes. Sending him a withering glare, Emma faced forward again. After a couple of more paces, Hook was still quiet. Emma felt somewhat smug; that's right, the famous steely eyes work every time. "I've heard a lot of stories about your parents since I've been back in the Enchanted Forest." Emma's joy at a minor victory immediately deflated. "The many adventures of Snow White and Prince Charming, or I guess I should say King James now." Hook paused, waiting to see if she would say anything before probing further. She didn't, so he kept going. "Any of them true?" Emma just shrugged, not even bothering to look back at him. She heard Hook speed up to where he was now right beside her. "I know you think that ignoring me will discourage me, but if you haven't already noticed, I love a challenge."

Hearing the amusement and seriousness laced in his voice, she started to see that her attempts would be futile, though she hated giving him the satisfaction. "I don't know exactly what you heard, but yeah," Emma reluctantly answered, glancing at him tiredly, "they're probably true."

"Ah." Hook nodded, smugness radiating off of him for getting her to crack. "Well that answers my question of where you got your impressive combat skills."

"I may have inherited them," Emma countered, thinking of all the times she had been forced into combat. Which for only being 20 years old, was a lot. She couldn't help the memory of Regina's last attempt from entering her mind and how the one skill, if one could even call it that, no one else had but her had saved her. A skill no one even _knew_ she had, not even herself. She would be damned if she let that slip to Hook though. Emma's voice was quiet as she still became lost in her thoughts. "But practice makes perfect."

Emma could feel Hook studying her. "You're not an ordinary princess." He finally admitted when Emma swore she was seconds away from hitting him.

"I'll take that as a compliment." She smirked haughtily, challenging him to deny it.

"You should." Hook agreed, his face still neutral, surprising Emma. "You'd make an excellent pirate."

Emma gave him a skeptical smile before turning to him with curiosity in her shining in her eyes. "Why do you want to revenge on Rumplestiltskin anyway?"

"He took my hand." Holding up his dismembered arm, Hook's features darkened dramatically. Emma's gut feeling told her there was more to the story but she wasn't going to push it. She shouldn't even be sharing anything with him in the first place. "Why do you?" He mused.

Her eyebrows knotted in puzzlement. "What? I never said I did."

"You said your parents probably want him gone as much as you do." Hook debated, reciting Emma's words back to her.

"Well, not for _revenge_, exactly." Emma rebutted stubbornly, not wanting to be wrong, causing Hook to roll his eyes at her. She took some time forming her answer. Not sure exactly how much he knew about Regina's curse or how much he knew of what had happened since then, she didn't want to give a lengthy explanation. Red had said her parents believed he was somehow involved, but she had also said it could have just been a rumor. And if it turned out he didn't know anything, Emma didn't want to willingly give him any information about it. Some people still believed that Regina would still cast her one-day so she was still a target as the supposed Savior, after all. "There's constantly some little war that's always brewing between him and the Evil Queen; they've already destroyed a lot of the land," Emma ranted to him thinking of the time when the worst destruction had come; Regina had held a woman who was important Rumplestiltskin captive for years and when he had found out, Emma almost wished she could have been in the land without magic, "and there are others that have come in, trying to get a piece of the power. There's been something different about the magic too." Emma felt herself stop as she looked up at the trees. The magic in and around her starting sucking her into her own little world. She could almost see it and feel it flowing through her. "It's almost like its changing, or dying." Yes, Emma could see how the magic was slowing draining from the land and how the air was constantly shifting, almost if it could come crumbling down if disturbed. She turned to Hook, believing he was stuck along with her in the magical reverie that was consuming her. "Don't you feel it?"

Having been staring at her transfixed, Hook suddenly stood up straighter as he looked around. He gave her an almost wary look before honestly answering "No."

And with that, it felt like somebody had turned off the suction on her body and she was now being drained. Emma sharply breathed out as she remembered just exactly where she was and whom she was with. What had she done? Why on earth had she gone on that rant like that? And the way that Hook was looking at her now reminded her so much of… No. No she would not think of him. And she certainly wouldn't think of Hook anywhere in the same context of him. Emma felt her breathing become heavier. At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to run. Because for the first time in a long time, she could feel fear slowly creeping up inside of her.

Hook took a hesitant step forward. "Emma…"

Hearing branches move, Emma swiftly turned her head in time to see a man running back into the woods. "Someone's been watching us." She recognized the color of the man's cloak. George must have found some more men to manipulate into working for him. Emma couldn't understand how he had the ability to conjure and transfix mob mentality in so many people. "He's here."

"What?" Hook stammered, obviously extremely confused by the sudden turn of the conversation, as he looked around. "Who?"

Emma held out a demanding and persistent hand. "Give me my bow and run the opposite direction from me."

Eyeing her up and down cautiously, he grabbed the strap of the bow and took a step back. "No." His voice dripped with obstinacy, reminding Emma of a stubborn child with a toy.

"Give it to me!" Emma snarled as she moved closer to him again and getting in his face. "He's only after me. I can defend myself better from the trees."

And much to Emma's disdain, Hook started to smile. How could he possibly think she was joking right now? Could she not look any more serious? If she had enough time to throttle him, she would. "If this is some sort of trick-" He amusedly began before Emma's fury and survival instinct finally boiled over and she kicked him square in the chest. She didn't bother watching him roll down the hill they had been standing next to before she took off running.

Only having her sword, she hoped could avoid an encounter with George and his men before she got home or be able to outrun them enough to at least get close enough to the castle where somebody would see her. A man she assumed was working for George popped out in front of her, causing her to inwardly scream. Today was just not her day. Emma charged toward him, her sword lashing at him. He blocked her, but she could tell she was the stronger fighter. If this was it…

Two more men appeared from behind her and she held her ground for an impressive amount of time before a painful blow came to her back, throwing her to the ground. One of the men grabbed her sword, while the two others forced her up. One tied her hands together and the other held his sword threateningly at her throat. They led her over to a small clearing, where she could George haughtily stationed up on a horse, surrounded by at least five more guys. Seriously, where did he find these guys?

"Hello, Emma." George greeted bitterly before smiling smugly and somewhat surprised. "I have to say, it was relatively easier to capture you than I thought it would be."

Emma sent him a sarcastic smile before she heard Hook's furious voice rip through the forest. "EMMA!"

"A companion?" George growled at his men, angered that this was something they had missed.

Hook burst through the trees, too blinded by rage to notice that Emma was tied up and being held by a wannabe guard. Holding out a threatening finger, he forcibly strode up to her, glowering, "Now you listen here-"

"Now's not really a good time." Emma snapped, sending him a look of warning with her steely eyes back in place.

His rage quickly dispersed as he looked around and finally noticed what was going on and to his credit, he looked only slightly fazed. Hook gave her what she hoped, for his sake, was an apologetic smile. "I guess you weren't kidding about those people."

"And who are you?" George demanded, walking his horse closer to them.

"Hook." Flaunting a charming grin, Hook bowed slightly and Emma wanted nothing more than to pound into his brain how he could possibly think that this was the time for theatrics. "And you are?"

"Clever." George tiredly replied as he eyed Hook's hook before answering with more conviction "I happen to be the rightful king of this land."

"More like rightful tyrant." Emma spat at him. Turning slightly to Hook, she whispered, "He's supposed to be my grandfather."

Apparently, even his old age, George could hear her. "_Charming_ was never my son." George corrected in manner that suggested that even thinking that was the most appalling thing in the world, fueling Emma's hate for him even more. He should be so lucky.

"How could I forget." Emma muttered distastefully.

"So, _Hook_," George addressed the pirate next to her, laughing slightly as he said his name, "Are you a guard for the princess?"

Hook shrugged nonchalantly, like this was an everyday conversation for him "No." Damn him. Where was the Hook from the alleyway when she needed him?

"One of Charming's knights?"

"No," Hook's voice became slightly melodeon and Emma recognized it as the voice he had been using when she had first met him in the pub, "I'm nothing but a simple pirate."

George raised his eyebrows in surprise. "What's a pirate doing with a princess?"

"If you must know," Hook sighed, moving slightly forward. What was he playing at? "She's helping me acquire information from her parents regarding Rumplestiltskin."

"Well, if you help me present her body to them, I'm sure they'll give you all the information you need." George persuaded. Emma's confidence to wavered momentarily, thinking Hook might actually take it. She knew enough about him to know he might, but she also knew enough to hope he wouldn't.

Hook seemed to be contemplating this before he narrowed his blue eyes at George, chuckling. "That seems a bit too extreme for my taste. Especially for someone who is supposed to be family."

George's face flooded with contempt. "Have it your way. You," George pointed the man that had been standing on the other side of Emma, "Take his weapons and that ruddy hook of his and tie him up too."

Letting go of her arm, the man moved around her and toward Hook, whose face now resembled the dangerous man she faced in the alley. With one look, Emma could see the plan in his eyes and she tensed, preparing herself. "I don't think so." Hook menacingly sneered as he whacked his hook across the man's face, permanently knocking him to the ground. With a stride toward Emma, he quickly sliced her ropes off with his hook and turned around so she could grab her bow off his back just it time as George's other men were surrounding him.

She quickly shot the two men that had been closest to her. Seeing Hook whip out his own sword and start fighting the other men with ease, she ran forward and started to make her way toward George. Effectively taking out one of the men beside him, George growled at her before he harshly kicked his horse and began to swiftly ride off in the other direction. Emma aimed an arrow at him, having a clear shot, but something inside of her stopped her. No matter how many times she came close, she still couldn't do it. She told herself that it was because if anyone should kill him, it should be her father but the familiarity of him over the years and hearing people refer to him as her father's father made her cell's scream 'family', even if he really wasn't, and she valued family too much to want to kill off any aspect of it. After hearing Hook finish off the last man, she finally slowly lowered her bow, still looking off into the distance at where George had disappeared.

"You let him go?" Hook asked somewhat flabbergasted as he moved toward her.

Emma jumped off the stump she had been standing on and walked through the men, searching for her sword. "For now."

"That man insulted my hook." Glaring off into the distance, Hook's voice was laced with so much disgust and contempt, Emma had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. With a relieved sigh, she picked up her sword. She palmed it warily, nervous and guilty about what she knew she was about to do.

"I don't mean to upset you, Emma," Hook's voice was lighter now, cheerier, and he turned to give her playful grin, "but I think we make quite the team."

She had been torn, but Hook's statement pushed her to her final resolve. Yes, they did make quite the team. But she had thought she had made quite the team with somebody else before, and it turns out, the only team anyone is truly ever on is with themselves. She had already learned that the hard way and she didn't want to have to learn it again with Hook, not when he already reminded her so much of him, not when a part of her _was_ scared that he might suddenly snap and kill her, and not when she knew a part of her already _did_ trust him. He had just helped her fight off George, after all. Her body felt like it was being pulled in too many directions and it wouldn't be long before she snapped.

Letting the strongest emotion take hold of her, Emma decided: She didn't want to trust him. She wanted to get as far away from him as possible.

Feigning she was in pain, Emma quietly groaned as she latched a hand onto her side, bending over slightly.

Hook stopped walking to study her, "What's the matter?"

"I think one of those guys must have nicked me." Emma muttered. She waved him off with a hand, like she knew she would do when she was pretending to be tough, and started feeling even more miserable at the fact that this was actually working.

"Here, let me see it." Hook insisted, moving closer to her so he could get a good look before she jammed the hilt of her sword into his temple, effectively knocking him out cold.

* * *

Her father was the first one to see her when she finally walked into the castle, trying to push back the guilt that was already plaguing her. "Oh good, you're back, I have something I want-" Charming greeted warmly as she strode toward her. He stopped short when he saw the dirt and blood that was covering her clothes and her long blonde hair that was dirty and knotted. "Did something happen?"

Emma rolled back onto her heels, scratching her neck out of nervous anticipation of his reaction. "I might have accidently ran into a certain white haired faux father figure of yours."

"GEORGE?" Charming roared, causing Emma to wince. Maybe she should've kept her mouth shut and told him she had tried to catch a rabbit. Grabbing her arms, he looked her over. "Are you okay? What did he-" Charming held up a hand and closed his eyes. "No, don't tell me yet. Let's get your mother first," Her father gave her a pointed, weary look, "she'll be livid if we discuss this without her."

"Too true." Emma agreed, and she wasn't looking forward to it.

Following him into their chambers, Emma spotted her mother sitting at her desk writing, back to them as they walked in. "Snow." Charming called as they walked in the room.

"Yes?" Snow turned at being called and then got up and started beaming, "Emma," Her joy quickly faded and turned cautionary when she took in Emma's clothing. Her voice was low and dangerous. "Please tell me you tripped."

Her father cut her off before she could get a word out in hopes of subduing the situation, his voice still outraged. "Apparently George is still set on going after her."

"What?" Snow snapped, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine. I promise." Emma pleaded, trying to contain the 'mama bear' that was dangerously close to taking over her mother. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

"Was it just him?" Charming asked somewhat calmer now, sensing what Emma was trying to do.

"He had a few guys with him." Emma begrudgingly mumbled and sent a dark look to her dad. If he was supposed to be helping her out, that was definitely the wrong question.

"You fought him off by yourself?" Snow barked and started ranting, concern flooding her face. "Why didn't you have anyone with you?"

Hook flashed through her mind but she did her best to think of something else. Anything else. There was no way she was telling her parents about Hook, at least not just yet. "It wasn't that big of deal." Emma exasperatedly motioned toward her outfit. "This outfit is white, it makes it look worse than it really was."

Emma could feel her mother studying her, staying perceptively quiet. But much to Emma's surprised, and gratitude, Snow let the subject drop. Her father continued grumbling. "Frankly, I'm still tired of his antics. I'll have some men start putting up more wanted posters tomorrow."

Snow and Emma both nodded in silent agreement as he strode purposively out of the room. "I'm just glad you're alright." Snow squeezed the top of her arms affectionately. "I'll help you find some new clothes."

* * *

Thanks again for reading!


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

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The next morning, Emma felt entirely too groggy after being unable to sleep from the itching curiosity to ask her parents the story of capturing Rumplestiltskin, the wracking guilt of abandoning Hook right after he had fought off George with her, and the paralyzing thoughts at the idea that Hook tracking her down to kill her was now a very real possibility. He didn't seem like the type to take betrayal with ease.

Emma couldn't find it in her to regret her decision, however; she had been right in not trusting him. Hook might have helped her but it wasn't because of _her_, but because she was still his best shot at getting the information he needed. He had just been using her, just like everybody else; and she was afraid of what would be left her of her when he was done. Emma knew Hook only had two priorities: himself and his revenge. She would be stupid to think otherwise and she had too much at stake to risk making anymore stupid decisions.

Even if her resolve still went against helping Hook, Emma still couldn't contain the desire to find out how her parents had managed to capture Rumplestiltskin. If she did ever run into to him again, maybe it was better to know so at least she could have something to bargain with her life for. Frankly, Emma was surprised she had never asked before. Walking down to the throne room to find her parents, the doors were closed and Emma scrunched her nose in confusion at the anomaly. She faintly heard her mother's voice saying, "…it's going to be hard to…" so Emma pressed her ear up against the door, straining to hear what they were talking about.

"… Abigail and Frederick have always been our allies." Charming's voice was a confused murmur and Emma could picture him standing up, supporting himself with both fists as he leaned into the table.

"But Caroline is getting married next month and when she becomes queen…" Her mother's statement bewildered Emma. Why didn't she know Caroline was getting married? Or that she apparently already wanted to take over for her parents? She was barely a year older than her. But most importantly, why were her parents talking about this behind closed doors?

"What are you saying?" Thank you, Dad.

Emma could tell Snow was reluctant to answer because there was a long pause before she finally said "She still blames Emma for what happened to Luke" And Emma felt her entire body turn to ice. How could she have been so blind to where their conversation was headed? Had the events that had happened these past few days really distracted her that much? She could feel the anger bubbling up at her parents not mentioning anything about Caroline to her and for talking about it without her, like they didn't believe she would be able to handle it. She could. Hadn't she proved that?

She could hear her dad start to defend her. "None of that was her fault. Emma's the one-"

"I know that, and even she knows that, but he was still her twin-" Emma didn't want them talking about this anymore and she certainly didn't want to hear it. She pushed the heavy doors open and walked in with a cheery smile on her, pretending she had heard nothing. "Good morning."

Her parents hesitated slightly and Emma felt her smile falter when she saw her parents shoot each other relieved glances when her apparent cheery state implied she hadn't been listening. As if. Snow beamed from the large circular table as Emma took the seat across from her. "Good morning to you too."

"Are you hungry?" Charming inquired from his standing position. Yep, she had been right on where he would be.

"Not really," Emma shrugged, proceeding to rest her elbows on the table. "I just wanted to see what you were up to."

Charming opened his mouth to speak but Snow beat him to it, talking in a hurried manner. "Just talking." Not obvious at all, Mom.

"Is anyone else in here?" Emma asked after a moment as she looked throughout the room, knowing that what she was about to ask was not something her parents would want to discuss with anyone around.

Her father crossed him arms, his blue eyes quizzical. "No, it's just us."

"Good," Emma breathed, slightly relieved. The curiosity was already burning at her and knowing that her parents had just lied to her left Emma not wanting to stay in their presence longer than she had to. "Because I actually have something I wanted to ask you two about."

"Is everything okay?" Snow asked worriedly.

"Yeah, of course." Exasperated, she took a deep breath before continuing. "The other night when I was with Alexandra she mentioned something about Rumplestiltskin."

"What about him?"

Emma waved her hand. "Nothing specific, it just made me realize that while I know he was locked up here for awhile," She started to shift her gazes between them, hoping she looked serious enough that they wouldn't ask her anymore questions about why she was asking, "I don't think I've actually ever heard the whole story."

"Oh, okay." Surprise, and maybe a little relief, washed over her mother's face before she turned to look up at Charming. "Well, you probably know better than I do."

Charming nodded and took a moment to search his memory. "Ella had made a deal with him before she married Thomas and when the time came for her to pay up, Rumplestiltskin demanded her firstborn child."

"He wanted a kid?" Emma's eyes widened in shock, and maybe a little horror. Yeah, imagining the Dark One wanting or even trying to manage a kid was definitely a little horrifying.

"He probably wanted to use the baby in another deal, like he had done with me and my brother." Oh, duh. Emma couldn't believe she had forgot about that. Her dad was able to rule with such ease, though, she sometimes had a hard time trying to picture him as just a shepherd. "So to trap him, we had Ella tell him she was having twins so he would be forced to sign a new deal. The quill that she was going to have him use was supposed to be enchanted to freeze him and render his powers useless for a short while. He fell for it and we had him imprisoned here for a while until…"

"Until the curse never happened." Emma finished for him, still lost in contemplation and confusion.

Finally sitting down, her dad nodded in agreement. "After he escaped, we found parchment and an empty ink bottle and eventually learned it wasn't the quill that froze him, but the ink. Ink that he also had with him in the cell, as well, and used to escape with."

"Ink?"

"A special kind of ink." Snow explained now. "From a squid."

Processing this, Emma paused before suggesting the obvious, "Why didn't he use the ink to break out right when he was first trapped?"

"We don't know," Charming sighed, stealing a glance at Snow. "He escaped the day after you were born, which was around the same time we thought Regina would cast her curse. We had talked to him before to see what we could do stop Regina, and he prophesized that you would be the savior."

"And he wanted to know your name." Snow added quietly. Emma could see her eyes glaze over, as if she were reliving the memory. "The best we can come up with is that for some reason, he wanted to be here when the curse happened."

Emma snorted. "Shouldn't he have prophesized the curse not happening?"

"I guess something happened he didn't expect."

Red's words about Hook maybe having something to do with it echoed in her mind but she decided to keep her mouth shut. Apparently her parents weren't willing to share that piece of information either with her either since they were quiet now, clearly waiting for Emma's reaction. Her green eyes turned skeptical. "And no one's tried the ink thing again?"

"We would if we could." Charming affirmed, his voice laced with a just a hint of longing. "The Blue Fairy told us that a squid that can produce that type of ink can only be found or retrieved by a mermaid at 'the bottom of a bottomless ocean,' whatever that means."

Emma inwardly groaned at the mention of the Blue Fairy, but she smartly kept her opinion to herself. She didn't want to start that argument again with her parents when she already had a list of fights she wanted to pick.

"What did Alexandra say to make you so curious?" Snow gave her an amused look but Emma could her the suspicion in her voice. A bit too much suspicion for Emma's taste.

"Nothing." Emma accidently snapped at them as she stood up to leave. Her mother's scrutiny was making her uncomfortable and Emma knew it was a matter of time before she figured out that she was hiding something. "I just feel like its better to know everything about Rumplestiltskin I can, you know?"

"Is everything okay?" Hearing her father repeat the question her mother had asked her when she had first entered the room made her want to smash something. Yes, she was okay. She always made sure everything was okay.

"Everything's fine. I just remembered something I have to take care of." Emma quickly relayed as she darted out of the room.

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The next day at dusk, Emma sat out on the small, stone balcony wall of the castle's garden. She was still in her pale green dress she had worn to a banquet earlier that day with her parents. The longer she wore it, the more it was slowly becoming itchier and more uncomfortable, but she didn't want to leave the garden quite yet. Not when this was one of the places she felt the safest and felt the most peaceful in. A lot had happened the past few days and all Emma wanted was to be alone and think.

She looked in the direction of where Regina's castle lay. The land in that direction looked absolutely dead and Emma felt her heart drop. Something was happening, and it wasn't just their kingdom. For years now, all the kingdoms were having trouble producing enough crops to feed everyone and it seemed to get more chaotic each day. Rulers in power assumed it was just a rough spot for everyone, that it would pass. But as Emma looked across the horizon, she knew it wasn't that, it was magic. She knew it. She could _feel_ it. Why couldn't anybody else?

But aside from that, the signs were obvious. Why had witches and sorcerers like Rumplestiltskin and Regina and Maleficent been at each other's throats for so many years now? Why did it seem like they were trying to horde and steal each other's magic? The fairies were being careful with their dust. She had heard the dwarves speculating about the mines. And people were still scrambling to try to find portals to other lands, even though there were none. If they weren't reading the signs, they knew subconsciously, at least, that they wanted to get out.

Something had to be done, that much Emma knew. But what? She knew she wanted to go after Regina, for many reasons; however, Emma knew her reasons were extremely selfish. But still, wouldn't having at least one powerful magical player out of the game help if it was magic messing with the land? Then there would be Rumplestiltskin, but maybe Hook…

Emma inwardly groaned, thinking about Hook made her head hurt. Especially since she wasn't even clear on her own reasons for not telling anyone about him yet. Part of her wanted to spare her parents the trouble of worrying when they clearly had bigger issues to deal with but then the other part of her wanted him to get his revenge. She'd seen a pain and loss in his eyes that mirrored her own. Emma knew what loss felt like and how it fueled the impulse to have it vindicated and she truly believed that if she couldn't get the vengeance she wanted, he should at least be able to.

Soon after hearing footsteps, Emma felt another presence in the garden and automatically knew it was her mother. Snow had been watching her like hawk these few days. Emma knew her mother say wasn't being completely honest with them and her father had shielded her from the probing she knew her mother wanted to do, not wanting to push it, but Emma was alone now and she knew it'd be a only a matter of time before she followed her out here.

Feeling her mom's hand start to move through her hair, Emma leaned into, savoring the feeling, and willed away all that she was feeling, if just for a moment. "What's going on in that head of yours?" Snow murmured, love and concern filling her voice.

Sighing, Emma answered her quietly, not wanting to end the temporary peace she was feeling right now. "Nothing really."

Snow removed her hand from Emma's hair, opting for her hand instead as she sat down beside her, a knowing look on her face. "What really happened when you were away?"

"What?" Emma blinked, trying to feign surprise. The gnawing feeling once more conquered her chest as her restlessness overtook her again.

"I know George attacked you again," Snow nervously breathed out, smiling just a little, "but there's something else, isn't there?"

Emma willed a blank face and neutral voice, turning to look in the direction of Regina's castle once more. "Why would you think that?"

"Because you won't look me in the eye right now." Her mother's voice grew louder with conviction. "Because you were asking questions about Rumplestiltskin…"

"I told you it was just something Alexandra mentioned." Emma snapped, definitely making a point to look her in the eye now. Couldn't she just try to handle something on her own for once? Didn't they have enough problems without Emma adding to the list because of a stupid decision she had almost made? She didn't want them gallivanting after Hook when he was the least of their problems and from what she'd heard, the last thing he needed was any more royals after him.

A twinge of guilt festered in her stomach, though, when she saw the surprise and hurt color Snow's face. "Honey, whatever it is, I just want to help. I can tell something's bothering you."

At that, everything inside her seemed to explode and the strength she had built up to hold back and contain all that she was feeling crumbled. It was almost like something inside of her was willing her to and she couldn't stop her words from tumbling out. "You want to know what's bothering me?" Emma's bleak emotions brought her to her feet and she found herself laughing coldly. "The fact that Alexandra was almost too afraid to be alone with me because according to her, wherever I go, danger seems to follow."

Snow stood up to be level with her, her voice struggling to remain calm and slow. "Emma, you know that's not your fault."

Emma didn't listen to her, continuing on with her rant bitterly. She couldn't stop. Not now. "It bothers me that I always have to question people's motives and it bothers me that some people still think I'm supposed to be this savior." She threw her hands out incredulously, a cynical laugh in her throat, her voice rising dangerously and harshly. "They either treat me like some glass doll or want to find some way to use me."

"Emma…"

"I'm tired of being hurt." Emma could feel the tears starting to form in her eyes and how her voice was now coming out strangled. She roughly swallowed back the painful lump in her throat and decided to channel her energy elsewhere. Taking a choppy breath, she threw her arm in the air and pointed in the direction of Regina's castle, "And I'm sick of Regina always holding that stupid curse over our heads!" Emma turned to face the ledge, her voice furious and now on full volume, just wanting some kind of release, "Just cast it already!"

"EMMA!" Snow roughly grasped her arm to spin her around, her face stunned and horrified. "You know something must have happened with the curse, that something must have gone wrong. You know Regina would have already cast it if she could."

Emma wrenched herself away from her mother. "Well I'm tired of her always coming after me, and you, and dad, and everyone else that might be important to us; always sitting there safely locked away in her castle, a castle that is supposed to be _yours_," She emphasized with accusing eyes, her voice brutal "trying to think of new ways to kill us. Why hasn't anyone tried to stop her? Why haven't _we_ done anything?" Emma poured out her disbelief, fuming and impassioned. "She been _right_ _there_, right there for 20 years-"

Snow cut her off, objecting indignantly while still trying to move toward her to get her to calm down. "We have tried-"

"Maybe we haven't tried hard enough!" Emma snarled, infuriated. Anger, pain, and loss was coursing through her veins and slicing through her chest. She just wanted to make everything that had ever happened to them worth _something_.

"Emma, look at me." Snow frantically grabbed Emma's face, pausing briefly to make sure Emma had stopped ranting and was listening. Her voice was determined, though wavering slightly emotion. "If you want to blame anyone, blame me. Regina wants to hurt you because of me and what I did." Tears began to enter her eyes and her voice turned soft and fierce. "I don't want you to become consumed with hatred. Going after her is not going to fix anything."

Struggling to breathe, Emma closed her eyes and took a moment to get a hold of herself. She chuckled humorlessly before callously confessing, "Sometimes I wish she would have cast that curse."

"Don't say that." Snow warned in a low voice. "We would have been torn apart, separated for 28 _years_ in a land without magic."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Emma staggered backwards, a little dismayed that that even her mother couldn't see what she could.

Snow narrowed her emerald eyes, startled. "And you wouldn't?"

"Look, don't you see it?" Rattled, Emma pointed out to the landscape she had been studying moments before. The overwhelming conclusions of her thoughts started to suffocate her while the magic inside of her slowly ate away at her reason, demanding more and more each day to be noticed, to be controlled. "Magic is destroying our land. Everything is falling apart! Our world is becoming unstable," She looked at her mother once more with wide, earnest eyes, her voice pleading and desperate. "Don't you feel it?"

With disconcertion in her eyes, her mother was speechless. "What?" Snow stammered, thrown.

Frantic tears were threatening to fall from Emma's eyes. "Why doesn't anyone else _feel_ it?" She hysterically asked to no one, leaning over to grip the edge of the wall to keep herself from shaking. Violent pulses were consuming her body.

"What is going on?" Charming worriedly implored as he strode out to them in an alarmed manner.

Emma felt her mother force her sit down on one of the benches as she tried to control gain control over her breathing and then saw her kneel down in front of her. "Emma, _Emma_, please calm down. Okay, breathe." Snow nodded in encouragement. She gave Emma a broken smile, her voice almost begging, "Please, I need you to tell me what's wrong."

Her dad was still gaping at her with a stunned expression. "Were you just _glowing_?"

"I don't know what's happening to me," Emma whispered raggedly, "Ever since Regina…" Pausing, she swallowed down what she was unable to say out lout and then took a deep breath, continuing on calmer and more confident, "Something's been different. Its like my body has suddenly become hyperaware of whatever is inside me. And around me. I can feel it growing everyday and it sometimes feels like it's about burst out of my skin, just like it did when I saved myself from her."

"You were prophesized to be the savior," Snow mused frantically, "Maybe it's a side effect from that."

Shaking her head, Emma murmured, "It has to be more than that."

"We can talk to the Blue Fairy." Squeezing her hand, Snow tried to reassure her with this suggestion.

Charming hung his head and pinched the bridge of his nose, knowing that was definitely not the person to suggest. "Snow…"

"I don't trust her." Emma spat through clenched teeth. No matter how much they tried to convince her otherwise, she would always be wary of the fairy.

"Emma," Snow argued, clearly exasperated, "we've been over this…"

"Don't push this now, Snow." Charming warned in a low voice.

"That doesn't change the fact the she didn't 'notice' it wasn't the quill that was enchanted," Emma countered, recalling the story they had told her yesterday about Rumplestiltskin, "or that she lied about the –"

"Stop!" Snow's furious voice rang out wildly, causing Emma to immediately halt.

Emma's heart stopped, not believing what she had been about to do. She had almost talked about the wardrobe, the one that she was supposed to have gone in to escape the curse and the one the Blue Fairy had lied about only taking one. The wardrobe they only knew the location of, hidden away in case the curse was cast one day, and the one they had convinced everybody they had burned because portals were on short supple these days and people would go to great lengths to travel to wherever they could get to, even a land without magic. The wardrobe they were never, _ever_ supposed to talk about because they could never really be sure who was or could be listening. With her reasoning bringing her around full circle and a clear example of a point she was trying to make, Emma's heart started pumping again as her anger rose. "See, this is what I'm talking about! We can't even talk in our home because we're afraid anything we say will be used against us!"

Charming stepped in, trying to rationalize with both of them. "We're just trying to do what's best."

"What's best would be doing something about it!" Emma hotly debated, growing annoyed that her mother was just standing there, staring at her.

"Emma-"

Emma ignored her dad's plea and kept on with her tirade. "Not always trying to ignore the fact that there is always someone out there plotting to – "

"Do you think I like living like this?" Snow's voice was quiet and dangerous and she effectively silenced Emma with one look, "Do you think I like knowing that my daughter is constantly threatened because of me, that I wasn't strong enough to protect her from the one thing I vowed I would? Of course I would _love_ to do something about it!" Her mother roared, but remained deadly still, probably scaring Emma the most, "But we have an entire kingdom to protect, a kingdom filled with people who have also been victims of magic and have lost a lot more than we have, and we can't put their lives in jeopardy because of our own personal vendettas. And as my daughter you should know better." Snow harshly berated, disappointment and hurt in her eyes. Her words sliced through Emma and she desperately wished she could somehow take back the last ten minutes. "So next time you start lashing out about how much Regina or anyone else has come after our family, and think it's a good idea to lead some sort of crusade against them, it would be best you remember that."

At that, Snow shot out of the garden, leaving Emma and her dad standing there completely speechless. If Emma ever cried, this was the time she would have chosen to do it. She wanted to throw up or completely disappear; never before had she made her mom that mad at her or even had a fight like that. Glancing up, Charming was still standing there, looking torn. "Emma, she's just worried. She didn't mean anything –"

"It's fine." Emma waved dismissively and tried to smile. "I know you want to go after her."

"No, when you see your daughter start to glow, you stay and find out why." He objected.

Emma glanced up at him feeling drained and confounded. "What are you talking about?" She looked down at her hands, nothing was different.

"When I first walked out here, I don't know, it just looked like there was a light coming from inside you." Charming explained, just as confused as her, "It disappeared the moment you sat down… Maybe your mother was just too focused on trying to get you to calm down to notice it, but I saw it."

"It felt like I was about to lose control." Emma whispered to herself, remembering how her chest felt like it was trying to rip itself from her body, compared to now when all she could feel was lethargic. So what was the trigger? Anger? Love? Strong emotion in general? Emma shook her head at him, not wanting to have to deal with whatever magic she had tonight, "No, go talk to Mom." Her voice was encouraging and she knew her father understood her enough to know she would be fine and that she just wanted to think, "I just want some space."

And then he left, leaving Emma just like she had started off being. Alone.

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Staggering back to her room, Emma was more confused than she'd ever been. She'd never meant to go off like that, but something unhinged her and it was like 20 years of suppressed feelings came pouring out of her and she was powerless to stop it. No wonder her parents had freaked out. She was never the one to want to talk about or bring up feelings. Emma was always the strong one.

But she couldn't deny that all of what she had said had been the truth. Emma was tired of not taking action. If anything was ever going to change, something had to be done. And now was the time to do it before it was too late.

Walking into her room, Emma noticed something was out of place. Her full length mirror was covered with a sheet. Thinking it must have been a guard or maid, Emma walked toward it to take it off but a familiar accented voice called to her from the darkness. "I'd keep that on there if I were you."

Emma whipped around and saw Hook stepping out from behind her door, sporting a devilish smirk. While she was definitely startled, it was like part of her had been expecting him. She put on a brave, collected face though her heart was pounding, waiting for the chance to sprint to the door. "What?" Emma indicated to the mirror with a finger, her voice sarcastic, "You think I'll try to break it and use the chards as a weapon?"

Hook took a step toward the mirror, frowning, but impressed. "I never actually thought of that."

Trying to use this distraction, Emma made a spring for the door. Hook easily blocked her with one arm before proceeding to shut the door by kicking his foot backwards. His blue eyes flashed dangerously at her, "Don't even think about it."

Shoving his arm off of her, Emma raised her chin defiantly, "You finally here to kill me?"

"Oh, I thought about it." Hook's voice was laced with contempt as he zeroed in on her and Emma found herself being backed against the wall, "In great detail, actually. While your betrayal certainly leaves a lot to be desired, did you have to leave me lying surrounded by dead bodies?" Snarling, Hook's voice rose with heated accusation, "It's going to take weeks to get this stench off my clothes." Emma subconsciously sniffed, and now that he had mentioned it, she couldn't get the wafting smell from her nose, especially now that he was inches from her. "And you get better hope this doesn't leave a bloody scar." Hook threatened as he jabbed a finger to his left temple where Emma had hit him with her sword. A nasty, bruised red cut was forming from hairline to eyebrow.

Emma immediately tried to roughly throw her hands over his mouth to get him to hush and be quiet. Hook swatted them away irritability. "How did you even get in here?" Emma pressed, her breathing heavy and heart pounding due to his proximity and the knowledge that she had no where to run. "And be quiet." She was finding it increasingly difficult to keep her yelling at a whisper level.

Leering, Hook wiggled his eyebrows, "Trade secret."

"So you're not going to kill me?" Perturbed, Emma's green eyes narrowed as she studied him, trying to focus on the issue at hand and not the faint scar she could see on his cheek.

Hook placed his right arm high on the wall above Emma, leaning into her further, his breath fanning over her face, "I'm actually here to strike a deal."

After swatting his arm down, Emma's eyes widened incredulously, "Excuse me?" That was definitely the last thing she had been expecting.

"I've been watching you these past few days and I've come to the conclusion that we have similar goals," Hook shrugged nonchalantly, like it was perfectly normal to stalk someone. Humor washed over his face as he searched for a different term, "Or aspirations, if you will."

"What goals would that be?" Emma sneered.

"Revenge."

Emma hesitated, Regina's face flashing through her mind. "What makes you think that?" She questioned, keeping her voice even.

Shrugging, Hook feigned contemplation, a smirk forming on his lips, "Oh, I don't know, while your parents may consider what happened in the garden earlier a fit, I heard it for what it really was," He paused dramatically, his bright blue eyes narrowing, "A cry for help." Haughtiness then overcame his features, "And I am here to answer it."

"WHAT?" Emma bellowed, terrified and embarrassed at what he might have heard. She quickly tried to replay the scene in her head. There was anything said anything that was too compromising, right? Other than her dignity. "You eavesdropped on me?!" With a horrified whisper, Emma poked him hard in the chest.

"Excuse me," Hook testily grunted as he tightly gripped her finger, "But my chest's still a little sore your _foot_."

Trying to wrangle her finger from his grasp, Emma wailed, "What did you hear?" He had officially overheard the worst conversation she had ever had in her life. She been so… emotional. Emma cringed at the word.

"Everything." Hook answered with as much innocence as he could muster and Emma couldn't keep the heat from rising in her cheeks. She glared at him tempestuously; he would always have that conversation to hold over her head now. Still trying to free her finger, Hook rolled his amused eyes at her before finally releasing her finger. So quickly and unexpectedly, though, it flew back and almost hit Emma in the face. Hook sighed, "Don't be so dramatic. You hardly said anything worthy of consequence."

"That's not the point!" Emma hotly argued.

"No, the point is I learned that the only way I'm going to avoid any more concussions is by giving you a little motivation." Hook corrected, his eyes shining wickedly. Alarmed, Emma opened her mouth to protest only to be cut off his hand. "Shut up, I'm talking," He impassively ordered, "I wasn't lying when I said you'd make an excellent pirate; but I would be lying if I said finding what I need for my revenge has been easy alone. If you help me achieve the plans I have for Rumplestiltskin, I'll help you kill Regina."

When Hook finally removed his hand, Emma looked up at him absurdly, "You want me to help you?" She clarified.

Raising his eyebrows in reflection, Hook inhaled a reluctant, sharp breath, "Essentially, yes."

Emma swallowed nervously. Could she really _kill_ Regina? Maybe Hook would just do it for her. Wait, no, no, no. She didn't actually want to kill Regina; she just wanted her locked up for good. That's it. And she couldn't trust Hook; she was a fool for even considering taking the deal. Or maybe she just needed more time to think about... No. Besides, her parents would disown her, or worse, if she went after Regina. Her mother had already made that much clear. Going with the first excuse that popped into her head, Emma quickly relayed, "I already told you I don't know anything about how my parents trapped Rumplestiltskin."

"Don't make me repeat myself," His voice was bored, "I heard your conversation in the garden and know you were asking about him."

Right, damn. Realizing that he would of also heard her mom chastising her about Regina and the kingdom, Emma's green eyes turned accusatory, "Then you also heard why I can't go after Regina."

"As Emma the Princess you can't," Hook contested, "But as just _Emma_," He smirked mischievously, "Well, that's a different story."

"With your help?" Emma challenged; she could feel her resolution wavering, wanting to agree with Hook's reasoning. After everything, making Regina pay for her crimes was one of the things Emma had always wanted. So much could be fixed for herself, and for her parents. Especially if what she had overheard them saying about Caroline taking over her throne soon was true…

"Yes. I've broken into Regina's castle before, stolen important things from her, and have managed to successfully avoid for her the past 20 years." Hook told her, perhaps grinning a little _too_ smugly, "And I have the leverage that she won't be able to resist. Leverage that I'll willingly hand over to you, if you ask nicely."

Emma eyed him curiously. "What leverage?"

"We'll get to that when the time comes." Hook whispered sardonically.

Rolling her lips together in an attempt to contain her annoyance, Emma threw a question at him, "And what's your plan for Rumplestiltskin?" There was no way she was going to agree if she didn't know everything.

"Once you tell me how he was entrapped before," Hook presumed, causing Emma to cast him a sharp look, "I plan to use it and send him to a land without magic," Everything about Hook seemed to darken, "where he'll be stripped of his powers and where I can finally kill him."

Thinking immediately of the wardrobe, Emma tried to hide her panic. No, there was no way he could have figured out that they had still had it from what she had said in the garden. Her mother had stopped her. Presuming, of course, he even knew about it in the first place. Feigning cluelessness, Emma asked, "How do you plan to send him to a land without magic?"

"That's step two, darling. Let's concentrate on step one for now." He tediously informed her, but it was still ambiguous enough to still leave Emma feeling rattled. "So, do we have a deal?" Hook conspiratorially grinned and held out his hand to shake on it. Emma was still torn. This could finally be her chance take action, like she had been urging her parents to do just hours before. She would feel like a hypocrite if she passed on his proposition. But this was _Hook_. Emma had already knocked him out twice and backed out on one deal with him, how could she be sure that this wasn't some trick to get payback at her? Or steal the wardrobe? She had to find out if he knew about that, even if at this point it looked like he didn't. An exasperated sigh from Hook caught her attention. "Okay, what's with the face?"

"I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to regret this." Emma murmured. She would just have to stay one step a head of him and just expect him to turn on her at any time. Unlike last time, she would be able to see it coming.

"I guess it's up to me to introduce you to a concept that is obviously foreign to you," Hook clamored through gritted teeth, clearly annoyed, "Trust."

It didn't use to be foreign, Emma thought bitterly. This time wasn't any different. "I just left you lying unconscious in a field!" She snapped.

"But you still haven't mentioned to me to your parents or anybody else, which says something." Hook's voice softened as he looked her straight in the eye, leaving Emma momentarily breathless. "So I'm willing to overlook your horrible decision making skills, if you're willing to overlook the fact" Letting out a guilty chuckle, Hook reached up to scratch the side of his neck, "that I did have to kill a couple of your guards to get in here."

Emma groaned, exasperated, "Are you serious?" Hook just gave out a small shrug and a look that seemed say 'pirate' or 'what did you expect'. Studying him once more, Emma knew she wanted the deal. But Hook was so… scary. Not a normal scary, but scary in the fact that he be so charming yet so ruthless; a scary that screams 'I've already left millions of women emotionally traumatized' And Emma didn't want to be one of those women. Impulsively, Emma sighed and stuck out her hand, "Fine." She succumbed, but reminded herself to stay one step ahead and not get fooled, "Deal."

"Excellent," Hook relished as he shook her hand, holding on for a little longer than necessary. When Emma shot him a look, he laughed, backing away, and held his arms out expectantly, "You have the floor for story-time, Princess."

Of course he would immediately start asking about how to trap Rumplestiltskin. "I should have added you not calling me that in the deal." Emma grumbled upon hearing his sarcastic nickname for her.

Hook ignored her and put a finger to his ear. "I'm not hearing a story."

"Well long story short," Emma drawled, "You need squid ink."

"That's it? Not even a little back-story?" Hook protested, looking put out. Emma glared back at him demurely, considering it payback for his apparent necessity to call her princess. "So, ink?" He repeated wearily.

"Yes. Ink from a rare species of squid that can only be found at the 'bottom of a bottomless ocean'," Emma frowned, musing. What did that even mean? Oh well, this was his problem not hers, "and only retrievable by mermaids."

Hook immediately lit up and started grinning, "Easy enough. Let's get on our way then."

"To where?" Emma tensed, bewilderment washing over her, "Even without the whole bottomless ocean part, I don't know where to find any mermaids."

"As it turns out," Hook gloated, reveling in the coincidence he was about to share, "I know exactly where to find some."

Emma was still skeptical. "And where would that be?" She questioned, slightly raising her eyebrow.

His eyes shining with excitement, Hook slowly sauntered closer to her, smirking, "Neverland."

Balking, Emma sputtered, "I am not going with you to Neverland." An entirely different _realm_? With _him_? No, no. She did not agree to this. Sure, she'd expected some traveling, which was fine, she knew her away around the Enchanted Forest and could get away and back home easily if she had to; but if something went wrong between them in Neverland, she would be stuck in an entirely different world, permanently, if she wasn't careful.

"C'mon, you seem like you're under a lot of stress," Hook persuaded in a somewhat mocking manner, "A little vacation would be good for you."

Because spending time with him would be a vacation? "I'm not going," Emma sternly repeated, "and besides, we've been a little short on portals lately if you haven't noticed." She added dryly.

"While the trauma you've brought upon my head lately has left me with a couple of headaches, it hasn't given me short term memory loss," Hook caustically remarked, "You've already agreed to help me so you _are_ going to Neverland, and where your lot is short on portals," He moved closer to her, luring her in with sea blue eyes, Hook boasted, "I happen to have a hat full of them."

There was portals? Emma halted, stunned and engrossed in what he was saying, "A hat?"

"Don't tell me you aren't intrigued now." Hook wickedly smirked as she felt his breath fanning over her face. When their eyes locked, Emma became absorbed in watching him, unwilling to end the connection, and she felt herself wanting to move even closer. Something flashed in the blue and Hook turned, moving toward the door, "We've got a lot of ground to cover so it's probably best we get going."

Feeling uncomfortable at how her heart had started pounding, Emma tried to return to the frame of mind she'd been in when he'd first mentioned Neverland. "And how do I know you won't just leave me in Neverland?"

Hook ceased walking, narrowing his eyes in frustration at her. "Are you really going to pass up the chance to possibly end the wrath Regina seems hell bent on inflicting on your family because of your fear of having to rely on me?" As Emma looked at him, she saw that there wasn't a challenge in his question, like there usually was. There was no provocation in his eyes, only curiosity and maybe disappointment. He genuinely wanted to know to her answer. He looked at her expectantly now, "The only person in this castle that has the ability to help you, love, is me." He was right. Her parents couldn't help her and she couldn't do it alone. And she had to do something. Something that would evoke some change in the Enchanted Forest before it completely fell apart. If stopping Regina was going to help in saving it, then she had no other choice. And there as something about the way he had said 'just Emma', like someone had finally seen her as her own person, Emma couldn't resist. She would have to trust him, at least for now. Emma nodded and looked at him with confirmation in her eyes. Yes, she would go. "And please," Hook added dryly, trying to hide a smile, "I use to live Neverland. Why would I want to leave you and make the people there suffer that type of exhaustion?"

Rolling her eyes, Emma deadpanned, "Charming."

"No, I believe he's down in the stables." Hook quipped seriously. Emma shot him a tired look, having heard that joke her entire life. Upon seeing her face, Hook started to laugh and Emma couldn't help but smile back at him, thinking that that was the first time she had ever heard it. Realizing that they were about to leave for an indefinite amount of time, Emma walked over to her desk and pulled out some parchment and a quill. "What are you doing now?" Hook complained at a whisper as he was already trying to make his way out the door.

"I have to leave a note." Emma told him like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Even after one of the worst fights they had ever had, her parents would send out an entire army looking for her if she suddenly went missing. She had to leave something to let them know she was all right and coming back.

Hook glared at her incredulously and marched over to her, snatching the parchment up. "No, no, no, we're not going to leave a fake ransom note so that I can have yet another bounty on my head when we return."

"That's not what I was doing!" Emma vehemently protested, a little insulted. She forcible snatched the parchment back, "If I don't leave a note, that's exactly what will happen. I'm just going to tell them I'll be staying at Red's for a while. Which is probably what I would be doing if you hadn't shown up, you heard that fight." She mumbled as she started to write, still feeling sick of the thought of it.

"Fine," Hook sighed, giving in, "Make it quick."

Shooing him away, Emma hesitated. As much as she now wanted to trust Hook, she still didn't, and if he did betray her in Neverland, she wanted to have a back up plan. Quickly jotting down the note, Emma placed it on her bed and followed Hook out the door.

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**Author's note:**

Thanks everybody for reading! And thank you for all the reviews and follows so far! I really appreciate and love each and every one of you for the support! Down here, I just thought I'd take some time to explain some new aspects from the story that were introduced in this chapter. So if you're interested, keep reading this tediously long paragraph... Even if it's an AU story, I still want to try to keep things as canon as possible… if that makes sense! In regards to Rumplestiltskin, I don't think he can really see the future and I'm choosing to go with what Emma said the last episode when she said the only reason he knew she was the savior was because he made it that way. I think that since he has been around so long, he is just really good at manipulating situations and predicting people's actions. If he could see the future, wouldn't he have been able to see Belle coming? Or Regina kidnapping her? Or even Hook tricking him with the bean? Also, on the show, Emma is just now becoming aware of her magic. She may be 28 but she's also been living in a land without magic for most of that time. Growing up in the Enchanted Forest where the land always had magic, I feel like she would have probably started be effected by it and trying to figure out how to control it a lot sooner. Which I think she will start doing on the show, especially now that's she back in Storybrooke, a land that does have magic now. Last point, Emma overhears her parents talking about Abigail and Frederick's kids, Luke and Caroline, and mentions that they are almost a year older than her. The show still hasn't shown us Abigail and Frederick after Charming helped them or what happened to them in Storybrooke after the curse broke, so I'm still willing to believe it's entirely possible they could have a kid before Regina cast her curse. We've already seen parents be separated from their kids in Storybrooke, like Hansel and Gretel, so maybe part of the curse for Frederick, aka gym teacher, was being a single dad. And Kathryn expressed her interest in wanting a family with David, maybe because subconsciously she knew she had one? I don't know! These are just my random thoughts lol I hope all of that makes sense and helps you understand the story better. Thank you again for reading and please review! I would love to hear what all you guys think and any opinions/suggestions/ect :)


	4. Chapter Four

Hey everyone! Sorry I didn't update as fast as I usually do, I just kept editing and was really nervous about this chapter since it's a big Emma/Hook one. Hope you like it :)

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**Chapter Four**

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"Are we almost there?" Emma asked for the tenth time. They had been walking for hours in the dark now and part of her frustration was coming from not knowing where they were headed in the first place.

"We're getting close." Hook informed her as adjusted the torch in his hand. His voice turned accusatory, "We'd be getting there sooner if you hadn't insisted on finding some new clothes."

Emma scoffed. "I was not going to go to Neverland in that dress." That dress barely allowed her room to breathe. How did he think she was supposed to travel to another realm in it? She was much more comfortable in her hunting clothes. Even if she had made them travel all the way to Red's first so she could sneak in and grab them…

Winking, Hook teased, "I liked the dress."

"Shut up." Emma snorted and shot him a sharp look, causing Hook to chuckle.

After a few more moments of walking, Hook turned to her, curiosity written on his face, "How did your parents acquire this ink the first time?"

"They didn't." Emma answered shortly. She hoped he would take the hint and not ask for the rest of the story. But she knew he would, this man gave a new definition to the word 'chatty'.

There was a slight pause. "Care to elaborate?" Hook dryly asked.

"When they finally decided to try and capture Rumplestiltskin," Emma sighed, feeling like she had been stuck on repeat lately, "the Blue Fairy gave them an enchanted quill that would temporarily freeze him as long as he used it. But after he escaped, they figured out it wasn't the quill, but the ink that had trapped him. Ink that he also had with him in his cell and used to escape with."

Hook nodded as he processed the story. His eyebrows scrunched up in puzzlement. "He had the ink the entire time?"

"Yep."

"Curious." Hook mused. His blue eyes glazed over, lost in thought.

Agreeing, Emma softly said under her breath, "That's what I said."

"And that's why you don't trust the Blue Fairy." Hook grinned, beaming. He looked as though he had finally solved some great puzzle. Emma remembered that she had mentioned her distrust of the fairy in the garden and realized he must have been wondering about it. "Because she had misinformed them about the quill."

"Among other reasons." Emma mumbled testily. Thankfully before Hook could ask her more about her other reasons, she saw that they were approaching a very old, run down house looking structure. Emma turned to him, eyebrows raised, "Is this it?"

Waving his torch, Hook ushered her toward it, "It is."

Emma let out a relieved breath and then eyed their destination with more skepticism, "What is this place?"

"A very old plantation. It's a perfect place leave from." Hook jammed his body against the door that was having trouble opening, revealing a dark dusty room filled with covered furniture and paintings, "The neighbors believe it to be haunted, so, naturally, everyone's afraid to come near it."

"Let me guess," Emma sneered, giving him a pointed look, "thanks to you."

Hook smirked triumphantly. "Possibly," he said.

"How did you find it?" Emma asked as she watched him carefully move one of the couches in front of the main door, barricading them inside. Paranoid, much?

"It wasn't easy, but Smee eventually came across it." Hook told her a little breathlessly. He dusted off his hand against the side of his leg before trying to lead her around the crumbling inner walls of the building and toward the center of the house.

"Who's Smee?" Emma called, walking away from him to explore the place some more.

After hearing the rusty creak and thump of another door opening, he answered, his voice far off, "One of my crew men. You'll meet him eventually."

Emma made her way into another room, a torch held high in her hand. Everything about the house seemed to be in decay, but there was no doubt that wealth had resided here. Entering into what she guessed had been a bedroom, Emma saw old parchment still strewn across a desk, empty ink bottles, muted silver candlesticks on the end, and even some old jewelry. "Wow," she breathed as she traced the outline of an old pearl necklace. Emma jumped when she felt something cold take hold of her wrist.

Having grabbed her with his hook, Hook began pulling her out of the room, "Come along now."

He led her down steps leading underneath the house and to another door. Following him inside, Emma glanced about the stuffy, dusty room, noticing a small bed, dresser, and something covered. Maybe a mirror.

Hook slid the latch across the door and continued to move various objects of furniture in front of it. "A little much, don't you think?" Emma dubiously remarked after Hook finally looked like he was finished, remembering his similar actions with the door they had used to enter the house.

"That hat is our only way back." Hook pointed to a small hatbox that was stashed in the corner of the room. He stared at her outrageously, "I'm not just going to leave it out in the open for anyone to find."

Emma lifted her hands at him in a backing away gesture. "Point taken," she said, nodding in compliance. It's not like she was thrilled at the thought of being stuck in Neverland, either. At that thought, she began wondering if her parents had found her note yet. Emma shook her head. No, not the time to be dwelling on that. She was trying to trust Hook, not already be relying on her backup plan in her head. To get her mind on a new subject, she indicated to the small bed. Wary, Emma asked, "Do you sleep in here?"

"Sometimes." Hook shortly replied, as if he were almost daring her to try and make fun of him. He strode past her to the corner and pulled a tall, velvet black hat out of the box.

So this hat was the portal? Emma had never seen anything like it. She studied it with interest before asking, "How did you get that anyway?"

"Courtesy of Regina." Hook arrogantly quipped as he took his place beside her once more.

Emma tried not to look impressed. Getting anywhere even near Regina's castle was extremely difficult, she couldn't imagine breaking in _and_ successfully stealing something. She felt her eyebrows scrunch as she wondered what Regina had possibly been doing with a hat like that. Probably nothing good. Also, thinking of their deal, Emma probed, "Is that the leverage you were talking about?"

"Not quite." With such a wicked glint entering his eyes, nervous acid started bubbling up in Emma's stomach as she finally began imagining the possibilities of what his leverage could be.

Swallowing hard, Emma asked, "How does it work?"

"Watch." Hook leered with a smirk as he set the hat down on the floor in front of them. He turned it slightly and as he backed away, the purple smoke of a portal started to shoot up in front of them. Emma watched absolutely enthralled and breathless as a windy, swirling vortex took the place of the floor. Wind whipping across her face, Emma could almost feel the magic inside her veins start singing and her heart began to pound in excitement. She hated herself for it. She wasn't supposed to be almost having.. fun.

"Are you ready?" Hook's voice pulled her from her enchantment. The loud, deafening whirl of the portal caused his yelling to sound faint. She looked over and saw his hand reached out for her. Realizing that he had been watching her, Emma started laughing breathlessly from embarrassment before nodding. As she grabbed his hand, Hook gave her a reassuring smile and together they jumped into the vortex.

Landing in the center of a circular room, Emma's amazed gaze began to land on all the doors that now surrounded them. "Wow. There's so many," she breathlessly mused. There were more entrances to more lands than she even thought existed. Had Regina been to all these places? Had Hook? At least all Hook was after was revenge. This type of portal in the wrong hands could definitely be abused. And if these were all the lands… "Can you-" Emma began.

Hook quickly shook his head. "No," he answered, his voice disappointed and perhaps a little frustrated, knowing she was thinking that maybe there was an entrance to a land without magic through the hat, "these are only doors for magical lands, I'm afraid." Emma began to feel disappointed for him. The hat had to be the worst type of irony for him. The access to numerous amounts of realms while the only one he wanted to get to was absent. Something in her head whispered that she could be the one to get him there, but Emma quickly blocked out the annoying thought. No, the wardrobe was off limits and for her if the curse ever happened. Hook led her over to a door with mossy green vines hanging down. With his hook, he pulled them back. "Here," Hook said with a haughty grin as he indicated with his free hand that she go forward.

Emma hesitantly stepped past the vines and into the darkness. She immediately felt a sudden change in the air. It was cold, damp, and thick with moisture. Blindly trying to feel for a wall, Emma's hands connected with hard stone. Shuffling forward, the darkness began to disparate as she approaching roaring… water?

Slowly reaching out, Emma dipped a finger into the rushing water. "Is this a waterfall?" she dazedly whispered.

"The back of one." Hook informed her, boredom in his voice. She saw him come up to her left through her peripheral vision.

Bewildered, Emma gaped at him, "How do we…?" Did the path just keep going or would they fall into a lake? She couldn't –

Even through the muted light, Emma could see Hook exasperatedly roll his eyes. The next thing she knew, Hook was pushing her forward with a simple, "Off you go."

Emma didn't even have time to scream in protest before her body was being hurled through the pounding water and sent flying down into the cove below. Hitting the water with a painful thud, Emma reflexively gasped and lost what little air supply she had in the first place. Caught off guard by the situation, she started panicking and fumbling around, trying to find up. The surge of the undercurrent of the waterfall inhibited her spiral downward even more and she began seeing spots in her vision as she tried to stay conscious. Mentally cursing Hook's name, Emma kicked one final time before everything finally went black.

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An uncomfortable pressure kept being pushed against her chest. Emma did her best to will it away, to ignore the growing irritated feeling. She just wanted to stay in whatever this peaceful state was she was in now. A biting pound sent shockwaves through her entire body, causing Emma to wince in surprise as she felt her lungs begin to vibrate. What was going on? Why was she being disturbed? She thought she heard noises. Oh, yes. Everything was coming back to her. She was in Neverland, she was supposed to be underwater, but- one last harrowing blow expelled the water from her now aching chest. Emma's vision was still blurry, her eyes popping open as she started agonizingly spurting water out of her mouth. Leaning to the side, she took a raw gasp for air, her throat still painfully burning, and then felt a hand clawing her wet hair from her face while still trying to get it to face frontward.

"Emma, look at me." Hearing the tension in Hook's voice, Emma turned to him, sporting an unpleasantly grimace, and began feeling extremely satisfied when she saw the concern on his face. Good, he should feel guilty! "Are you okay?" He asked, worry etched on his features. After choking out another rasping cough as more water tried to make its way out of her lungs, Emma nodded at him. Hook's face turned from distress to fury in a second, "You can't swim?!"

"No!" Emma croaked, appalled and disbelieving. When had she ever had the need to learn before?

His blue eyes were burning with rage. "Why didn't you say anything?" Hook snarled.

This was somehow her fault? "I'm sorry," Emma choked out between severe coughs and wheezes, glaring daggers at him, "maybe I was about to when you decided to just _push_ me through!"

Hook vehemently growled before he pushed himself off the ground and Emma rolled back onto her side, trying to slow her laborious breathing. After a moment, she heard him start indignantly scoffing. "I was standing up here, laughing," Hook told her like it was the most outrageous thing in the world, "thinking you were trying to get me back for pushing you."

"Does it look like I'm joking?" Emma infuriatingly shot back. She decided to ignore his incensed rant about how difficult it was to revive someone one-handed and instead, turned to lie on her back, deeply breathing in more air. Emma stopped when her eyes were met with the most beautiful combination of stars she had ever seen. Right. _Neverland_. Lights were painted across the sky in a sea of colors, contrasting with the fading blue of space. Sitting up slightly, she could see that it was still light out but the sun was getting lower on the horizon, casting off golden spurs of light throughout the air. To her right, she saw the tall waterfall from which they had come from behind attached to a rocky ledge. Taller, luscious hills residing behind it. The small cove-like area the waterfall emptied in to was filled with sparkling blue water and eventually flow into a river. Everywhere she looked there were bright green trees, ones that were so much healthier looking than the ones in the Enchanted Forest. Everything just seemed more vibrant. And aside from her lungs still feeling sore, Emma noticed she felt better, more energized. Was it somehow the magic?

"Welcome to Neverland." Hook said. Emma glanced up and saw that he looked a lot calmer and more resigned, but she could still hear a faint trace of frustration in his voice.

Emma continued to marvel at the sights around her. "It's beautiful," she whispered, completely entranced.

"Don't let its beauty deceive you," Hook warned. She grabbed his outstretched hand so that he could help her to her feet, "Some of the most beautiful things here are Neverland's most dangerous."

Indicating for him to lead the way, Emma attempted to wring out her hair. Walking and trying to deal with some mermaids this soaked was not going to fun. She tiredly sighed, asking, "So where are these mermaids?"

"Patience, love." Hook said cheekily as she began to follow him through an array of trees, "If we go now, it won't be nightfall until we get there." He turned to her with warning flashing in his eyes, trying to show her that he was being serious now, "A very dangerous time to be around mermaids."

Annoyed that they couldn't get anything done about the ink tonight but still curious, Emma asked, "Why?"

"The mermaids harness their magic using the many moons that are here." Hook said as he pointed up at random areas in the sky, "At night, they become very deadly sirens. Even the most committed of men will fall prey to their calls."

Emma nodded as she began to think through what he said. The word 'men' stood out to her. "So their calls wouldn't necessarily work on me?" She conspiratorially questioned. Maybe she could just go deal with the mermaids by herself.

"It's unlikely," Hook reluctantly conceded as shot her a disgruntled grimace, "but they're still powerful at night without having to hypnotize you so don't even think about it."

With a small indignant puff, Emma muttered, "Fine. Are there any other magical creatures here I need to be aware of?"

"Neverland is full of them," Hook held up his arms to the forest surrounding them, smartly adding, "And most of them hate each other." His tendency to lean toward a theatrical disposition was coming out again and Emma had to keep herself from rolling her eyes in amusement, "The real danger lies in accidently getting caught in the crossfire."

"Okay, so," Emma exhaled deeply as she tried to find a simpler meaning in his words, "basically, just keep to yourself and you'll be fine."

Hook shrugged, a slight smile on his face. "I guess that's a simple way of putting it."

Shaking her head, Emma snickered. After hopping and climbing over some fallen trees, she asked, "Where are we going now?"

Beaming, Hook replied loftily, "To find my ship."

"Your ship's here?" Emma asked, failing to hide the astonishment in her voice. She didn't know why, but she had just assumed it would be docked somewhere in the Enchanted Forest.

"If you know way to fit it through the cave back there," Hook cavalierly remarked as he pointed a thumb in the direction from which they had just come, "I'd be all ears."

Emma scoffed scornfully before hitting him jeeringly on the arm. "That's the only way to get back?"

"Through the hat, at least," Hook bantered back to her, laughing, "Yes."

"What about your crew?" Emma mindfully asked.

"They're here as well," Hook intrinsically explained as Emma attentively listened, "you see, the hat has a rule. How many people go through has to be the same number of people that come back. So, for example," He gestured between them, "two in, two out. If my entire crew wanted to go back," Hook drew in a contemplative breath, "that'd be a lot of people to find to come here in the first place."

Emma nodded and thought through what he was saying. That was a very complicated rule. One you had to be careful with. Getting nervous at the thought that she could possibly get stuck here if Hook suddenly decided to go back to the Enchanted Forest with someone else, like that Smee person he mentioned. Emma tried to brush the gloomy possibilities away. He'd just saved her life; he could have let her drown if he wasn't really serious about their deal. A twig snapped to her right and Emma reflexively tensed, her hand automatically moving to the hilt of her sword.

"It's probably just some of the lost boys." Hook's voice was unconcerned as he kept walking. She jogged to catch back up with him again.

"The lost boys?" Emma reiterated, still watchful of the trees. She saw nothing. Whoever they were, they must be good.

Hook looked amused at her caution. "The most famous inhabitants of the island."

"Who are they?"

"Orphans." Hook said and Emma was somewhat surprised at the empathy that seemed to be in his answer. Turning once more toward where she had heard the sound, she tried to spot someone. She also felt a sympathetic pang in her chest. She had sometimes wondered if she would have ended up an orphan if she had ended being sent through the wardrobe. Hook's voice became teasing, "They're probably just curious about the newcomer."

Emma cast him a doubtful glance, "How would they know I'm a newcomer?" She would never be able to learn all the names of all the people in her kingdom alone even if her life depended on it.

"Neverland is just an island," Hook expressed blatantly with a small chuckle, "and it's very hard to get to. It doesn't seem as open to other realms, as say," He still seemed indubitable in his explanation but Emma could briefly see some sort of ambiguity forming in his eyes, "the Enchanted Forest." Shaking off whatever qualm he had been fixated on, Hook turned to her with his former confidence returned, "Most people who do come here tend to never leave either."

With his wet shirt still hanging loosely around his forearms, Emma accidently caught a glance of the tattoo that was on his right wrist. Seeing a name, Emma knew she probably shouldn't ask him about it and risk worsening his mood again but she couldn't help but want her suspicions confirmed. The way thrived and pursued his revenge, she knew it had to be about more than a hand. "Who's Milah?" Emma tentatively asked and pretended to be relatively uninterested. Hook shot her a menacing look and she knew she was failing miserably.

"Someone from long ago." Hook shot back darkly and in a way that clearly warned her to end the conversation. His chilly demeanor was back in record time.

Emma wasn't one to back down, though, and she wasn't going to let him try to scare her with his mood swings, especially since they were supposed to be working together. She brashly shot back, "She's the real reason you want revenge on Rumplestiltskin, isn't she?"

Rolling down his sleeve to cover the tattoo, Hook refused to look at her, which only confirmed Emma's assumptions. She tried not to feel bad for bringing it up, even though she did, and she mentally scolded herself for bringing it up when they were making their way through a forest alone together, no where else to go. "And what about you?" Hook spat, throwing her an antagonizing glare, "What's the worst thing Regina has ever done to you?"

Feeling her body start to freeze, Emma mustered up the strength she needed for what she was about to say. She hated saying it out loud. It just made everything that had happened involving that situation too real. Too real in a way that haunted and agonizingly sliced through Emma daily. Just think about Regina, she told herself. Don't think about the other people involved. She wasn't keen on having to share it with Hook either, but Emma knew he had heard her talking about her magic in the garden and how Regina had played a part in the discovery of it. And the way Emma could fell how her magic was happily zooming through her veins here in Neverland, she wasn't very confident that it _wouldn't_ make an appearance while they were here. Emma swallowed down a painful lump in her throat, her voice coming out soft and wavering, "Reach her hand into my chest in order to pull out my heart."

Hook suddenly halted and turned his head slowly toward her. Did he look white? "What?" He snapped with a low growl. A brief look of apprehension crossed his face as she saw him glance down at her chest.

"Don't worry, it's still there," Emma wryly smiled. She couldn't blame him for momentarily wondering if she was being controlled by Regina, that was one of the tricks she was known for. While Hook was still radiating a tumultuous aura, Emma could tell he was still expecting the rest of the story. She took a deep, shaky breath before continuing, "Two years ago, I was on my way to meet someone when I ended up meeting her instead." Yes, that sounded believable. No need to tell the story. Emma already felt sick to her stomach just at the thought of possibly having to confess that part of the truth to Hook one day. Not that she cared what he thought. "All of a sudden, I look down and I see her arm sticking out of me," Emma started irrationally laughing, remembering the impossible image and not wanting him to see how hard this really was for her, "Ready to rip out my heart, but she couldn't." Emma moved a hand to cover her chest, looking up at Hook for the first time and feeling oddly relieved when she didn't see any judgment in his eyes, only attentiveness, "It was like something inside of me stopped her and then shot out of me, knocking her down."

Engrossed in her story, Hook was staring at her, an inexplicable look in his eyes. "And then what happened?" he quietly murmured.

"And then I ran." Emma said, shrugging her arms in defeat. She let out a deep breath, her body still shaking from the fear she had felt sharing that.

They started slowly walking again, and it wasn't long before she felt Hook's eyes on her again. "Was it magic?"

"What else could it be?" Emma tiredly sighed. She had gone over what had happened in head so many times, explained it to her parents just as much. Her parents had wanted to seek outside help for some answers, but Emma had convinced them to let her stay in ignorance for just a little while longer, not wanting to face the reality of what it could mean yet. Or maybe she was just scared. But now that her dad had apparently seen her glowing… Emma could feel her blissful ignorance coming to an end.

"Why does Regina hate your family so much?" Hook asked, agitation in his voice.

"She says my mother ruined her life." Emma muttered, already foreseeing that Hook would make her explain every detail of the story. Now that the worst, or the worst Emma was willing to tell, had been said, she felt more at ease talking to Hook.

"Why?"

She definitely saw that coming. "She blames the death of her true love on her." Hook waved his hand at her, motioning for her to continue. Emma's voice turned caustic, "Once upon a time, there was a king who wanted to marry Regina when she bravely saved his little girl from a runaway horse."

"Your mother." Hook repeated with a knowledgeable grin.

Emma silenced his enthusiastic participation with a sharp look. "But Regina was already in love with someone else and wanted to run away with him instead of marrying the King."

"Bad form."

"Stop interrupting." Emma ordered, trying not to laugh. She was glad his good mood was back but this was not a story to be laughing about. "One night, my mom accidently saw them in the stables together and Regina made her promise to keep it a secret. But Cora, Regina's mother, wanted her to marry the king. Already having her suspicions, she manipulated my mom into telling her the truth." When she saw him start to open his mouth, a mischievous glint in his eyes, Emma swatted a warning finger at him, "I swear I will knock you out again if you say 'bad form' one more time."

Hook glowered. "And then?" His voice dragged with impertinence.

Emma hesitated, this was definitely going to bring them back to darker territory, before somberly answering, "And then Cora ripped his heart out."

Hook visibly tensed. "What is with that family and ripping out hearts?" He asked, irritation in his voice. Taking it as more of a rhetorical question, Emma stayed quiet. After a moment, she heard give a frustrated sigh, "And it seems like its Cora's fault, not your mother's."

"I guess she figures it would have never happened if my mom hadn't told Cora." Emma lamented fairly. Even her mother agreed with that. And it was a lot harder to hate someone who was your flesh and blood then someone who you had no connection to. Emma understood the logic.

"Still." Hook contemptuously jeered. "It wasn't your mother who ripped out his heart." A little befuddled, Emma stared at him strangely. Here was a man that was consumed revenge, it literally determined his every action, but yet, he still couldn't understand someone else's. Or was it more than that? Yes, any decent human being became appalled at the thought of ripping out someone's heart, but Hook seemed more affronted about the act than usual. Why was that? An exasperated glare from Hook startled her out of her musing. "What?" He demanded irately.

"Nothing." Emma said quickly, not wanting to start another heated argument. As they suddenly came to a clearing, the sight before them left Emma breathless. She and Hook now stood on a hill above the shoreline. The sky laid out in a stunning view of bright twinkling stars, flashes of color, and rising moons before them, getting darker with distance, and seemingly never ending. The dark ocean matched the sky's distance along the horizon. Emma could see nothing else, no indication that there was anything but the island, sea, and stars. "A bottomless ocean." Emma whispered, disbelief and wonder in her voice.

Hook smirked, looking pleased. "Have you finally learned to stop doubting me?"

Emma just shook her head at him, unable to hide the smile forming on her face. The river that the waterfall had bled into snaked beside them down into the sea. Near the shore on the other side, Emma could see an array of tan buildings and docks. "Ah, there she is." Hook pointed down to the one ship that was harbored, excitement and pride filling his voice, "The Jolly Roger."

During their walk down the rocky hill and across an unsturdy wooden bridge as they headed toward the Jolly Roger, Emma noticed something was now different about Hook. There was just something in his whole demeanor that seemed off.

As the approached the docks, Emma noticed a dodgy looking, gray haired man sitting on the ground smoking a pipe by the walkway. When he spotted them, he immediately started cowering, much to Emma's chagrin. But his eyes stayed focused on Hook. "Captain," the man stuttered timidly, "you're back."

"Indeed I am." Hook coldly replied and swiftly strode past him. Emma stared at Hook, trying to get him to look at her, but he kept ignoring her as they approached the ship. Maybe he wasn't acting strange, maybe this was just him. Was this really the first time she had seem him interact with other people without putting on a show for some stint he was trying to pull?

Hook walked aboard his ship with a commanding air. "Look alive mates, your captain has returned," he announced with some brisk excitement and vanity. The crew bellowed a respectful cheer. Emma followed him on, a little lost on exactly what she should be doing. Normally, she was used to having to make up excuses and hide from all the people trying to initiate conversation with her. Now, no one seemed particularly interested in who she was.

"Ah, Mr. Smee," Hook addressed a short, dumpy man in a red hat with some sort of genuine pleasure for the first time. Okay, so no introduction for her then. Thanks, _Captain_. "tell me how has my ship been faring."

Unsure of what to do and out of her element, Emma awkwardly stood to the side and waited on further instructions from Hook. One of the crewmen, a tall man wearing a turban and covered with tattoos sauntered over to her. "Hello, beautiful," the man cat-called.

"Hi." She shortly replied back, blank-faced and impassive.

"Blondes are rare around here," the man said in a way that made Emma's skin crawl. He reached up and grabbed a fistful of her hair, toying with it, "especially with hair that is as bright and shiny as yours."

Emma was about to shove a fist in his face when someone beat her to it. Hook had already backhanded the man down to the ground with relative ease. He pulled out his sword and held it up to the man's neck. "She is my guest," Hook informed him hostilely. Applying more pressure with his sword to the man's neck, he menacingly threatened, "and you won't touch her."

After her shock at what had just happened subsided, Emma was getting to angrily start protesting at Hook when she noticed no one else was sharing her emotions. The man on the ground didn't look surprised at all, just extremely regretful and a little fearful. The rest of the crew looked a little intimidated, but there was no surprise among them either. It was almost like they had been expecting it. Like Hook being a raging maniac was a normal occurrence. With a curt flick of head, Hook motioned for her to follow him.

"Was that necessary?" Emma furiously whispered at his back as they walked below deck. She would take the theatrics over whatever that was any day.

Without turning around, Hook snippily barked, "Yes."

As they walked into his cabin, Emma started choking on incredulality. There was gold everywhere. Stacks of gold coins on the table. Gold cups. Gold statues. Apparently, he was a hoarder. "I'm guessing you're a fan of gold." Emma dryly remarked.

"Impressive, I know." Hook said pompously, either oblivious to her sarcasm or choosing to ignore it, as he closed the door. He seemed more relaxed now and there was no trace of the man she had just seen above deck. His personality changes were starting to give her whiplash. Emma decided to let it go for now. She didn't want to risk whatever good standing she had apparently earned while they here in Neverland.

"Where did it all come from?" Emma asked, curious, as she looked about the room more. He had a lot of treasure, but there was still order about it. The table was clean and the bed was made. Either he was neat freak or it had been a very long time since he'd been there. She guessed it was a little of both.

"You'll probably hear some of the stories tonight." Hook said flippantly.

Sifting through some of the jewelry he had sitting in a bowl, Emma distractedly and vaguely repeated, "Tonight?"

She heard him open a drawer and start shuffling through it, "When we go to the tavern."

"Why are we going to a tavern?" Emma groaned. Hook pulled a flask out of the drawer with a grin on his face. Apparently she had already driven him to start drinking. She started eyeing a stack of old parchments that was encased in glass, "We're supposed to be finding the squid ink."

He took a long swig from his flask before saying, "Which we can't do until tomorrow morning." With an exasperated sigh, Hook walked over and opened the glass case for her.

"Right." She caustically mumbled as she studied the parchments. Seeing they were just a bunch of old maps, she carefully put them back.

"Please," Hook sardonically replied, "don't try to hide your enthusiasm."

Emma turned and saw him grabbing a new vest from his closet to change into. She strode over it, a look of amusement on her face, "Seriously?" Emma teasingly snickered as she saw the colorful array of vests, pants, and coats. She hadn't realized he was so fashion forward.

"Enough." Hook ordered crossly as he roughly pulled the curtain closed, finally getting annoyed at her for going through his stuff. He gave her a pointed look, "You'll need to be careful, though."

"Why?" Emma disdainfully asked. They had met in a tavern and she ended up knocking him out. A fact she would gladly remind him of.

"Neverland is a world of vices." Hook lectured in a somewhat condescending manner, causing Emma to grimace, "The longer you're here, the more it starts to feed on your biggest temptations or weaknesses," He moved closer to her, his voice low and insolent, "making certain urges harder to resist."

A swooping sensation pulsed through her body. "And what was yours?" Emma breathed. But then she started thinking about how easily his mood could change, how men cowered when he past them, the way his crew almost expected violence, and how anyone but her seemed to be afraid of him. Hook's was wrath.

His clear blue eyes roamed her face. "I think you already know the answer to that question," Hook tauntingly whispered before slowly backing away from her, "I may be able to keep my men in line, but I can't make any promises about anyone," He paused, dryly adding, "or anything, else."

Vexed, Emma crossed her arms. "I can take care of myself," she informed him hotly. And what was 'anything' supposed to mean?

"I never said you couldn't." Hook countered, an easy smile on his face, as he left the room to go above deck.

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Piling into the tavern with Hook and his crew, Emma hung back near the door and watched as Hook leaned over and started whispering something to Smee. She had already noticed Hook seemed closer to Smee than any of the other men in his crew so she didn't think anything of it until she saw Smee glance nervously in her direction. Suspicions rising, Emma eyed them until she saw Smee frantically nod and then stalk off to join the other men. Hook strode over to her.

"What was that about?" Emma immediately started questioning.

"Nothing," Hook said, smiling innocently. Maybe a little too innocently. Emma narrowed her eyes. He grabbed the top of her arm and started dragging her toward the bar, "Let's get a drink."

The barmaid that greeted them had bright, fiery red hair and was wearing a dress so small, Emma was afraid her breasts would pop out at any moment. Ugh, seriously?

"Captain, you're back," the barmaid cooed at Hook, making Emma cringe is annoyance. This was a tavern not a whorehouse. The red head started to pout, "I've missed your visits."

"You know I would be in here every night, love, if I could," Hook replied back to her as he leaned over the bar, sporting a charming grin, "but I happen to be a very busy and important man."

A busy and important man? Emma rolled her eyes, inwardly scoffing. Please, doing what exactly? Harassing princesses in pubs? "What would you like?" the barmaid giggled, smoldering back to him, "It's on the house."

Hook winked. "The usual." Within moments, the busty red head was back with his drink and fluttering eyelashes.

And then she started to walk away, completely ignoring Emma, not even sparing her a glance. Livid, Emma called, "Excuse me." While Hook may be easier on the eyes, she was still a paying customer. The barmaid turned and gave her a bored stare. "Can I get a drink?" Emma supercilious remarked.

The barmaid kept staring at her, a strange look washing over her face. Emma started to raise her eyebrows in confusion when the woman finally marched over to her with a disdainful sneer, "Why don't you and your lighty magic head somewhere else, Blondie?"

"What did you just say-" Emma began heatedly, her nostrils flaring. An arm roughly pushed her back.

Hook was in front of her, leaning over the bar again, faking a laugh, "Okay, love, just be a good girl and get her a drink. Just this once."

"I wouldn't provoke her too much." Hook said as they walked away, shoving the drink in her hand. He seemed annoyed. "She's a succubus."

Emma's eyes widened in horror. "Like a demon?" She asked incredulously, trying to keep her voice down as she followed him back to where the rest of his crew was. So demons could apparently sense she had magic. Fantastic. And 'lighty'? What was that, some sort of insult?

"Yes, like a demon." Hook said with so much indifference it started fuel Emma's annoyance to the point of rage.

She gritted her teeth, frantically whispering, "Then why did you seem so friendly with her?"

"Succubus aren't dangerous for men." Hook told her, looking amused now. His eyes turned wicked. "Quite the opposite actually," He said suggestively, leaning his head down toward her slightly.

Emma wanted to gag at the unwelcome mental image. "You're disgusting," she accused icily.

"So I've been told," Hook replied, smirking and almost looking proud of himself. Emma clenched her fists, resisting the urge to hit him. Turning away from her, he lifted his beer up to his men, heartily exclaiming, "Cheers!"

Two hours later, Emma was glowering at a table by herself. In her defense, she had tried to drink and have fun, but because of Hook's little bit earlier when they first arrived on the Jolly Roger, all of his crew was afraid to even look at her and that stupid barmaid wasn't going to give her anymore drinks. And it wasn't like Hook was talking to her either. He was off on the other side of the room drinking like a fish, gambling, and chatting up that sleazy succubus, or whatever the hell she was, simply having a grand old time. Contracting a couple of diseases would probably be good for him. Whatever, she didn't need this. She could leave, go see Neverland at night by herself, and hopefully get the peace and quiet she wanted. Yes, that is exactly what she wanted to do. Waiting until Hook had his back turned and looked preoccupied, she jumped up from her seat and swiftly tried to make her way to the exit.

Emma was stopped short, thought, when Smee intercepted her. "Excuse me," Smee stammered nervously. Emma started balefully eyeing him for blocking her exit, "Your Majesty."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "You know who I am?" Emma whispered lowly to him.

"Yes, the Captain has informed me of your true identity."

So that's what that whispering must have been about. "Okay, well you don't have to call me that." Emma said, rolling her eyes. She tried to move past him, "If you'll excuse me-"

Smee jumped in front of her again. "May I ask where you're going?"

When Emma saw his eyes suddenly dart in the direction of Hook, she felt her blood start to boil. He had the nerve to somehow coerce Smee into being her _babysitter_? While he drank himself into oblivion? That arrogant bastard. She tried to keep a calm demeanor so Smee wouldn't realize she had caught on. "The bathroom." Emma said bluntly. She raised an eyebrow, daring him to question her.

"Right." Smee quickly said apologetically. With an embarrassed chuckled, he stepped aside, "Sorry."

Emma left the tavern without looking back.

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review if you can! Also, this story won't be centered around Neverland, they'll only be there for two more chapters, at the most. So stay tuned, there's a lot of stuff coming up!

My tumblr is .com and I think I'm going to start posting some sneak peeks and other stuff if anyone's interested and/or wants to follow me! :)


	5. Chapter Five, part one

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for all the kind reviews! I really appreciate your feedback! Also, this chapter is a bit shorter than the others. As I wrote out chapter five, it was beginning to already be like 30 pages long on Microsoft Word so I decided to cut it into two parts. I usually hate short, filler-like chapters, but hopefully this one is not too bad. Enjoy! :) Part two will be up soon.

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**Chapter Five, part one**

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Emma couldn't deny it any longer. She was completely and utterly lost. Leaving the tavern seething in anger, she had blindly started walking in an attempt to get as far away from there as possible. After she had finally cooled down, Emma realized she wasn't as mad at Hook as she was annoyed with herself. That man was just so damn frustrating. She kept letting him get under her skin and she would already be impulsively reacting to him before she saw that she was giving him exactly what he wanted. And now she wandering around in the dark in the middle of a forest in a completely new realm to her. She was trying to justify all the reasons in her head that this was Hook's fault when a high-pitched voice greeted her from behind.

"Hello there."

Emma whipped around and saw a black haired fairy hovering in the air. She immediately relaxed. She may not like fairies but she knew them well enough to know not to be threatened. The fairy in front of her looked different than the ones in the Enchanted Forest, though; Emma was used to seeing fairies in ballroom type dresses, but this one was wearing pants. And even if she was mad at Hook, Emma was still going to heed his warning and not get too involved with any of Neverland's residents while she was here. They just needed to get the ink and leave without any extra drama. "Hi." Emma said, her voice dull and flat as she tried to continue on her way.

The fairy flew in the front of her. "Are you lost?" she asked, innocent concern washing over her face.

Emma stopped. Okay, she didn't have to like the fairy to get directions from her. And directions were harmless, right? There was no way just speaking to a fairy would get her on the kill list from whoever they were hated by. "Maybe," Emma confessed reluctantly, still eyeing the fairy with some speculation.

"Are you looking for the Jolly Roger?" the fairy asked, and definitely not as innocently as before.

Narrowing her eyes, Emma harshly asked, "How do you know that?" This is why she never trusted fairies. They always had some secret agenda.

The fairy giggled at Emma's reaction. "I've been watching you," she said calmly, trying to reassure Emma that she had nothing but good intentions, "I'm always curious when newcomers come here, and as a pixie, it's my job to keep watch over Neverland."

While Emma believed her, seeing as Hook had said the Lost Boys had been doing the same thing, she still wasn't ready to exchange any friendship bracelets yet. "Do you mind pointing me in the right direction?" Emma asked, hoping to continue on her way. Alone.

Pointing to a small stone path that Emma had apparently missed, the fairy smiled, sweetly saying "That way."

"Thanks." Emma muttered, a little embarrassed. How had she missed that before? Neverland must be messing with her head.

"Excuse me," the fairy called, blocking Emma's path once more, "but do you mind me asking what exactly is your purpose here?"

Damn nosy fairy. This was the last thing she needed. She was already dealing with a nosy pirate. "I'm just here to help someone out," Emma coyly replied and tried to make her way around the fairy again.

"With what?" the fairy continued interrogating as she zoomed in front of Emma's face once more.

Annoyed, Emma threw the stubborn creature a scowl. "Who wants to know?"

The fairy's good willed composure began to waver. "Vidia," she answered, her voice harder than before.

"Well, Vidia," Emma replied caustically, feigning politeness, "that is none of your business."

"It is my business when I think you don't really know who are dealing with." Vidia snapped, casting Emma a harrowing glare.

So this was about Hook? Emma started to shake her head in disbelief. Of course it was. It was like the man made it his job to make as many enemies as possible. But if given the choice between trusting Hook or a fairy, she would choose Hook. And it wasn't like Hook was hiding his true nature from her. "I know exactly who I'm dealing with." Emma spat out confidently.

Vidia hissed, "Then you know it's inevitable he will betray you."

Emma felt her confidence start to waver at hearing the fairy voice her fears. Hook was such a wild card. Normally, she was very good at reading and predicting people, but Hook kept surprising her at every turn. With both good and bad. But there was still something about the fairy that seemed off to her and the last thing Emma wanted was letting her gain the satisfaction of getting to her. "Thanks for the directions." Emma said, her voice low and stern, attempting to dismiss the fairy.

"You have magic."

Stunned, Emma stared at Vidia with wide eyes. The fairy could sense her magic too? She felt herself start getting excited at the prospect that someone could inform what her magic even was exactly, but then another part of her started to feel defensive and nervous. Was having others sense her magic and in turn, letting other people know about it really a good thing? If her magic was her one true defense, shouldn't she want to keep that unknown to all for as long as possible? Unsure of where her true opinion lied, Emma stammered out a nervous reply, "What?"

"I can sense it." Vidia said, staring at Emma with outrageous eyes, like her ability to sense magic should be the most obvious thing in the world, "You're radiating one of the most purest forms of magic I've ever seen."

That was definitely new information. "What does that mean?" Emma asked, eager and anxious.

"Oh," Vidia said, playing coy upon seeing Emma's apparent lack of knowledge, "I don't know."

Emma's gut feelings about the fairy from before started to kick in. She did not like where this was going. And this fairy was an idiot if she thought she could play her. "Yes, you do know." Emma objected, her voice sharp, and then proceeded to glare at the fairy threateningly.

"How about we make a deal?" Vidia offered eagerly.

She rolled her eyes at the fairy's words. That line was already coined centuries ago by Rumplestiltskin. "I'm not interested." Emma's voice was flat. As much as she might want to know about her magic, her desire to get back to the Enchanted Forest was greater and the only person who could do that for her at this point was Hook.

"How about we make it more of proposition on my part." Vidia bargained determinately, "Before you leave Neverland, come find me and I'll tell you about your magic."

"What's the catch?" Emma asked, looking Vidia up and down with suspicion as she tried to hide the dissolving resolve in her voice.

"No catch," the fairy said, but Emma could see the hidden maliciousness there, "I just want to stop Hook from attempting to do more damage than he's already done."

What damage? He seemed pretty confident and savvy when it came to Neverland. Though she wouldn't be surprised if he had done something stupid to piss off the wrong people. Incredulous, Emma asked, "Why would I agree to that?"

"So you can betray him before he betrays you," the fairy said ominously.

Thinking of all the people who had betrayed her before, pain shot through Emma's chest. The fairy had a point, but deep down, Emma still carried a little hope. Until Hook blatantly did something against her, she would choose to trust him. "And what if he doesn't?" she asked, not sounding as sure as she wanted to be.

Vidia narrowed her eyes at her. "You know I'm right."

"Unfortunately for you," Emma said harshly, ignoring the thoughts of her letter and the inkling doubt she couldn't help but have in Hook, especially after all she had already been through, "a fairy has already lied to me before so excuse me for being a little wary."

Vidia sniffed with offense and raised her nose pretentiously, "I'm a pixie."

"And I'm out of here." Emma mumbled dryly under her breath as she began to stride down the stone path.

"My offer still stands." Vidia called out to her as she continued to walk away. Her voice was confident; "I know you'll find me eventually."

With the fairy's offer resonating in her head as she tried to make her way out of the forest, the more and more Emma started to want to prove the fairy wrong. She hoped she wasn't going to regret this.

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Relief flooded through Emma when she finally saw the Jolly Roger appearing. She'd guessed she had been gone two hours, at the most. The dirty looking, gray haired man that she had seen when Hook had first brought her to the ship was still sitting in the same place as before. Since Hook had acted coldly toward him, Emma approached with a friendly smile but his eyes went wide and fearful when he spotted her, saying, "The Captain's been looking for you."

"Has he now?" Emma asked, an eyebrow raised and feeling somewhat smug.

The man started to shakily rise from the ground, apprehension in his voice. "And it seems to have put him in an even fouler mood than usual."

The wheels starting turning in Emma's head. Oh, this could be good. It seems payback was in order. Trying to hide her smirk, Emma waved a finger in the air, innocently asking, "Which way did he happen to go?"

"It doesn't matter," the man replied as he moved forward to grab her, "I'm taking you to him."

Emma whipped out her sword and pointed at his chest. "I'd like to see you try," she stated confidently. She wanted to see just how far the Captain's _worry_ would take him, "Tell me, where do you think would be the most dangerous place for me right now?"

The man visibly gulped, eyeing her nervously. "A blondie like you… probably with the natives."

"Natives?" Emma restated, eyebrows scrunching in confusion. Wouldn't anyone who lived here be considered native? And why were people so obsessed with her hair?

"Yeah, the Piccaninnys."

"Hm." Emma mused. She had never heard them before. Well, whatever would work? Glancing down at the bracelet she had liked and taken from Hook's collection to wear, she stuck her sword back in its sheath. "If the _Captain_," she mocked, "happens to come by this way again, tell him you saw them take me. Give him this as proof," Emma pulled off the golden bracelet, nonchalantly tossed it to the man, and with a fake sweet smile added, "and then I'll make sure you get to keep it."

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Emma sat at the table in Hook's cabin, going through some of the old maps she had found earlier. It was really quite weird how much some of the Enchanted Forest had changed, yet stayed the same. She hadn't been back that long and she started to wonder when Hook we would back over here and if that man would really tell him she was taken by the natives. Emma figured he wouldn't, but maybe if he saw that she wasn't as afraid of Hook as apparently everyone else was, he would do what she asked. Poor Smee, having to break the news that she had left the tavern. Even though she felt bad, Emma couldn't help but start laughing to herself thinking of what Hook's reaction would have been. She hoped he hadn't been too hard on Smee, though. But seriously, would he even be that mad that she left the tavern? It's not like he even seemed to really want her there. When the door to the cabin suddenly crashed open with a loud clash, Emma was so startled she reflexively jumped to her feet.

Hook strode in looking furious and with a snarl on his face, "Emma, I've been looking for you everywhere."

Damn. Looks like her plan at payback didn't work. Stupid, untrustworthy pirates. Hook looked extremely scary and menacing and for the first time, all of it was directed at her. Doing her best to rebuff his anger as much as possible, Emma groaned, lamely replying, "You were supposed to think I was kidnapped by the natives."

"I happen to be an intimidating man." Hook rabidly argued, his words dripping with insolence. He moved until he was standing with an intimidating stance in front of her, "People aren't usually keen on crossing me." Hook held up the bracelet she had given the man and roughly snapped it into a pile of jewels, angrily spitting, "And I see you've taken the liberty to just barter away my stuff now."

Her own anger rising in reaction to his, Emma held out her arms, indicating all the gold he had in his cabin. "I didn't think you'd miss it," she said contemptuously.

"Where have you been?" Hook impertinently demanded through gritted teeth.

Remembering the fairy's words and the doubt that it had caused to start creeping up in her, Emma decided to keep the experience to herself. Just in case Vidia happened to be right after all. "Out." Emma shortly replied, crossing her arms defiantly.

Hook stared at her expectantly. "Out where?" He repeated, animosity coloring his voice.

Emma glared balefully at him, her voice becoming tart and sharp, "Out walking."

Pointing an accusing finger at her, Hook's voice became dark, "I thought I warned you Neverland was dangerous. Going 'out walking'," He mocked, exaggerating her tone of voice, "is a good way to get yourself killed."

"Oh please," Emma snorted indignantly. The big bad fairy had her shaking in her boots.

"I was this close to going to the mermaids' lagoon." Hook put his thumb and pointer finger together directly in front of her face, his blue eyes raging stormily. Emma irately tried to slap his hand away, "I could be the meaty portion of some mermaid stew right about now."

"First of all, I don't even know where this lagoon is." Emma shot back testily, a little offended he would think he would actually go there, "And secondly, you said that it was still dangerous–"

"Oh, and I'm just supposed to believe that you've finally taken my word on something." Hook violently scoffed, staring at her outrageously, "Someone, please, get me some parchment," He overdid a glance about the room in a sarcastic search, "I'd love to have this writing-"

"I'm not an idiot!" Emma yelled, absolutely enraged.

Hook growled at her. "Why couldn't you have just stayed in the tavern?"

"And done what?" Emma asked hysterically, the memory of the tavern fueling her rage even more, "watch paint dry?"

Words laced with contempt, Hook began, "Maybe if you hadn't been off pouting in a corner-"

"I was _not_ pouting!" She protested furiously, "And frankly, I'm a little surprised you even noticed what I was doing."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Hook questioned, offense written on his face.

"It just means you that since you were so busy gambling with your crew and getting served free drinks from a _demon_," Emma spat disdainfully, "that you bullied Smee into-"

"Oh, so that's what all this is really about." Hook humorlessly laughed, looking positively smug. He stepped toward her, his eyes dancing wickedly, "You're jealous."

Emma gasped incredulously. No, no, no. Over _him_? Fuming, she got up threateningly in his face, spitting acidly, "I am not jealous!"

"It's okay, Princess," Hook smirked haughtily, taunting her even more, "most women get that way around me."

"You are so unbelievingly egotistical," Emma hissed and tried to push him further away from her but Hook wouldn't budge as he continued to proudly glower at her. She was _not_ jealous. "I can't believe you have the nerve to even think I would be jealous of a dirty-"

"Then why are you so mad?" Hook countered, reveling in his assumption with an overbearing arrogance that caused Emma's blood to start boiling.

Feeling spiteful, Emma hotly rebuffed, "I'm mad because its seems like I'm the only one holding up their end of the deal."

Hook stiffened. Looking demented with rage, He roared, "WHAT?"

"You heard me." Emma sneered, pleased to have hit a nerve. It seemed like that was all this whole fight was. Them trying to be the one to throw the harder punch. She didn't even know if she could remember what she was so mad about in the first place.

With an icy and cutting glare, Hook argued, "I'm the one who got us here."

"Where you've done nothing but sit around and drink." Emma spat brazenly.

"I told you we couldn't go bargain with the mermaids until daylight." Hook debated heatedly, almost shaking with fury.

Emma started to rant angrily. "That doesn't mean-"

"Maybe," Hook bellowed, lividly trying to talk over her, "we would have gotten to Neverland on time if you hadn't been so concerned about your bloody clothes," he accused maniacally.

"Really?" Emma reeled, her voice rising to match his, and frantically threw her hands in the direction of his closet, "Coming from the man who apparently feels the need to own a vest in every color."

"MY VESTS-"

"Captain-" A voice stuttered from the door.

"WHAT?" Emma and Hook both dementedly roared at the same time to the figure at the door that had interrupted them.

Emma saw that is was Smee peeking through the doorway, looking at them with a bit of terror for having to break the hostile tension that had been suffocating the room. "A word?" he asked, sending Hook a look that she didn't quite understand. With her and Hook both breathing heavily, Emma noticed just how close they had been standing and she reflexively backed away. Without looking at her, Hook briskly strode out of the room.

The door snapped shut with a loud bang, causing Emma to jump and let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding. Her heart was pounding rapidly and she began to inhale deeply to calm herself. What had just happened? What had they even really been fighting about? Emma didn't think she had yelled and heatedly argued that much with someone in her entire life. But it was like she couldn't stop herself from trying to one-up him. Now that he was out of the room she started to see how stupid all of what she had said really was. She massaged her temples. Hopefully whatever Smee had wanted to talk about wouldn't anger him more. Emma wasn't sure she could handle another round.

After a bit of nervous pacing on her part, Hook slowly walked back into the room without a word just glowering darkly at her. Emma let out a small, relieved breath. Well at least there would be no more yelling. When he still wasn't saying anything, Emma hesitantly asked, "What was that about?"

"Just Smee offering his services to help knock you out." Hook smirked devilishly. Emma widened her eyes, thinking he was giving her some hint of what he was about to, but he cut her off with an exasperated glare, "I told him to go back to the tavern."

Both of them stood there silently, not sure how to continue. Hook finally asked, "Where did you really walk to?"

"Nowhere I got lost." Emma mumbled, embarrassed, and rolled her eyes to play it off like she wasn't. Feeling the smugness radiating off of him, Emma snapped, "Oh, don't look so smug."

After a moment, Hook finally let out a sigh of defeat. "If you really want to see some more of Neverland that badly, I'll sail you by Pixie Hollow right now," he said, looking at her endearingly, "Pixies may be vindictive little creatures, but they certainly know how to live in style."

Hearing Hook refer to the fairies as pixies reminded her of how Vidia had offensively corrected her before also. She looked up at Hook with some confusion coloring her face, "I thought they were fairies."

"Essentially they are, there is a slight difference between the two, but we can get into that later." Hook said, waving a dismissing hand at her. He continued on with some demureness, "So why not?" Emma visibly hesitated, her confidence still a little shaken up from her confrontation with Vidia and torn whether she should tell him about it or not. "You still don't trust me do you?" Hook asked incredulously, noticing her withdrawal into herself, "If you don't recall I did happen to save you from drowning."

"I know," Emma quickly agreed, before continuing on nervously, "And thank you for that," her voice turned quiet, "I'm sorry I haven't said that yet."

Hook stopped and he began staring at her with some understanding entering his eyes, "Someone must have done a real number on you."

Feeling too exposed, Emma roughly swallowed, saying hoarsely, "Let's just go see the hollow." She saw him start to say something else, but Emma quickly made her past him to head out the door.

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"How's this?" Emma asked, yelling from one of the masts she was trying to adjust. As they the Jolly Roger around the coast of Neverland, she had helped him with some of the sailing to make the ship a bit easier to navigate than if it was just he trying to do all the work. Emma had been getting distracted easily, though, especially at the beginning. All the stars and galaxies shining above the endless sea were more bright and beautiful than anything she had ever imagined. It was hard not to stop and stare.

"It's fine, Emma." Hook replied from his position at the wheel with an easy smile, "you're a natural."

Sighing with relief, Emma hopped down and made her way back to the

Stern. She shot him a sharp look, "Just so you know, I'm still never calling you Captain."

Hook just smirked at her. "Never say never."

"Okay," Emma said, taking a deep breath and turning toward him, the whole fairy and pixie thing still nagging at her, "so what's the difference between a pixie and a fairy?"

"Not much," Hook said, shrugging indifferently, "Fairies dedicate their magic and lives for the good of others. What's good in their opinion," he added gratifyingly to her when he saw her throw him a skeptical grimace, "They all become godmothers and what not. Pixies have no loyalties. They use their magic when they want and how they want."

Interesting. Emma wondered what personal reasons the pixie had in wanting to thwart Hook. "So there magic is still the same?" Emma asked, still curious, "they still use dust?"

"Pixie dust." Hook relented after a searching moment.

"You said everyone here hates each other," Emma said, hoping to steer him toward talking about his past, in any, with the pixies without trying to seem too obvious about it. She decided she better play this one close to the chest, "Who do they hate?"

"The mermaids," Hook grinned as he mentioned the people they had come here to see in the first place, "And the mermaids hate them as well. It's just a big competition to them, really. Pixies have free reign over the land," he continued with a flourishing wave between the land and sea, "mermaids reign over the sea. Both are extremely vain and both are always trying to outdo the other." He stopped suddenly and then pointed at something behind her. "There it is," Hook announced and then moved to stand beside her at the railing.

Emma turned around and saw the Hollow, glittering white and gold against the shoreline. It looked like a giant fallen star and it absolutely mesmerized her. "Wow," Emma muttered breathlessly. "How did you find this place?" Emma asked Hook, still amazed by the vitality and beauty of Neverland and secretly interested to know more about his past, "What made you choose it?"

"Right after Rumplestiltskin cut my hand off, I tried to kill him using this hook." Hook said, holding up his hook to her and trying to feign bravado. With a short, humorless chuckle, he added, "Obviously it didn't work."

"He's immortal." Emma added quietly with understanding.

Hook nodded. "If anything, I knew I needed to time. Killing him wasn't going to be easy," his voice hardened as he gave her an ironic smile, "And where better to come than the place where time is nonexistent."

A small surge of panic started to form in Emma's chest. There was literally no time here? Trying to hide her worry, Emma asked, "How long were you here?"

"It's hard to say. Time is different here." Hook said after a moment, shrugging nonchalantly. Bitterness washed over him as he then admitted, "And even I got caught up in Neverland."

Emma's thoughts flew to the note she had left her parents. Time had everything to do with that note. As much as she was reluctant to admit, she was beginning to trust Hook. And if her parents acted on that note and he found out about it, she knew he would see that as a betrayal. "How much time-" she began, wanting to know how much time he thought had passed in the Enchanted Forest since they had been here.

"Don't worry," he told her, looking at her with some confusion coloring his face, "we won't be here nearly long enough for it to make much a difference."

As she tried to calm her nerves, Emma hoped that was true. She couldn't imagine her mortification if her parents… "Was he your true love?" Hook asked suddenly, breaking her out of her thoughts and pulling her into ones she tried to avoid like the plague.

A painful lump started to clump up in Emma's throat. "I thought he was," she finally quietly choked out hoarsely. She laughed a little breathlessly, not believing that she was actually admitting this to him, "I'd hoped he was."

Continuing to gaze at the hollow, Emma could feel his stare penetrating her. "What happened?" he asked engagingly.

"What happened with Milah?" Emma countered, turning to finally look at him, challenging him with her eyes. Hook didn't answer. He gave her a tight lipped smile with some amusement and concede filling his eyes. Well, it seemed they were at an impasse on this one.

"Killian Jones."

"What?" Emma asked, completely thrown and lost at the name.

"That's my name." He told her with a small smile. Exasperatingly rolling his eyes, he dryly added, "You really didn't believe I was born with the name Hook, did you?"

Looking at him now, Emma began to see him more clearly than she ever had. That's why she had been finding herself so frustrated with him. It really was like she had been getting to know two men. The pub with Alexandra, when he offered the deal, everything on the Jolly Roger: that was Hook. But him cornering on her way from Red's, him saving her from drowning, their walk into Neverland, and maybe even this moment, was Killian. But which one was the real him?

Almost as if he could see these thoughts going through her head, he cleared his throat and stepped away from her, "We should be getting back before my men do. They'll probably drunkenly walk off the docks thinking the ship's still there," he said, trying to be funny.

As glad as she was to finally have some real insight to the man beside her, Emma couldn't stop the nagging worry about the time difference from taking over her thoughts as she remembered her letter and hoped he was right about it not making much of a difference.

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_I can't explain everything right now, but by the time you read this I'll be in Neverland. If more than a week goes by, find a portal and come get me. If everything goes as planned, though, I should be able to get back on my own. _

_I'm sorry,_

_Emma_

_PS: Whatever you do, don't go to Rumplestiltskin. _

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A/N: I hope you liked it! I wanted to give Emma one last chance to enjoy Neverland because shit is definitely going to start hitting the fan in part two.

And Emma finally learned his real name! Which I am thankful for because I was tired of always having to refer to him as Hook.

Also, somehow the link to my tumblr messed up or got lost in translation when I tried to put it down here last chapter so here it is: suddenlyamy (followed by the normal dot tumblr dot com ) (it won't let me just write out the link?) so go follow me ;) and i'll start putting up some sneak peeks from all the future chapters

Thanks again for reading and please leave a review if you can! Love you all!


	6. Chapter Five, part two

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! :) Here is the beginning of the end of their Neverland journey. Enjoy!

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**Chapter Five, part two**

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The next morning, they were finally off to see the mermaids.

"I still don't see why we couldn't have just taken your ship over here." Emma said, breathing hard from the exertion of having already walked almost all the way across Neverland and now up a steep cliff to get to the Mermaid's Lagoon. Hook- no, Killian, she had decided that he was Killian at least for now, had suggest they approach the lagoon from this area so that they could have the high ground to their advantage.

"A little walking is not going to kill you." Killian shortly replied. Emma could hear the irritability in his voice.

She turned to him, raising an amused eyebrow. "Someone's cranky this morning," she teased.

"Well I forced to sleep on the floor of my own ship last night," he shot back darkly, accusation in his eyes.

Emma rolled her green eyes at him. He was being such a baby about it. "I thought that was you 'being a gentlemen'," she said mockingly, quoting him sarcastically.

Killian glared at her balefully, snapping, "That doesn't necessarily mean I enjoyed the experience."

"A true gentlemen wouldn't complain," Emma said back as nonchalantly as she could, pretending that she didn't know that her saying that would get him to stop complaining.

He sent her a sharp look but did indeed stay silent. Emma had to turn her face away to hide her smirk. After another moment up them battling their way uphill, Killian finally answered her question from before. "I haven't had much personal experience with the mermaids," Killian admitted, "and I'm not going to put the lives of my crew at risk."

Emma stopped to stare at him, her eyes wide with shock. That was the real reason for their trek? "So just our lives?" she asked incredulously.

Trying not to look guilty, Killian forced a grin and tried to make light of the situation, saying, "It's all part of the adventure."

"You said they were powerless during the day," Emma accused hotly.

"No," Killian confessed, visibly reluctant to participating in this conversation, "I just said that we wouldn't stand a chance against them at night."

"Fantastic." Emma dryly growled under her breath. When they started to approach the top and flatter portion of the rocky hill, Killian started to slow his pace and quietly whip out his sword. Thanks for the warning? With an unbelieving gasp, Emma whipped out her own sword and glowered at him.

"It's just a precaution," he explained coolly, feigning indifference, but Emma could see the rigidity in his stance.

Precaution, her ass. It was just like him to keep the knowledge that the mermaids could still be dangerous to himself until the very moment they were about to approach them. Hearing nothing but the waves crashing on the rocks in the lagoon below, they stealthily crept forward. Emma senses were on high alert and everything that happened within the next split second came so fast Emma didn't even comprehend what was going on until it was over. A snarling, clawed, and razor toothed creature was flying toward them and suddenly the magic inside Emma took over. All she could think about was protecting herself and Killian as a bright whiteness shot out of her free hand and formed into a globe-like structure around them. The creature hit the shield with a loud, hideous shriek and was sent flying back down into the water.

As everything slowed back down again, Emma gasped, dropped her sword and stared at her hands with complete astonishment. What the hell had just happened?

Emma turned to Killian for some confirmation that whatever she had just performed was real, when she saw him lying on the ground, having been knocked over by the force of her magic. He stared up at her, startled and impressed. "Well alright then," he said, dazedly smiling as he got up from the ground and started brushing himself off, acting like it was no big deal that _she had_ _just used magic_.

"I have no idea where that came from," Emma croaked, staggered and confused. How had she just done that? This situation was _nothing_ like what had happened with Regina.

Killian furrowed his brow and looked at her with some concern and started to move toward her but was interrupted by the voices calling them from below the cliff. "What was that for?" an offended, female voice cried.

Together, she and Killian moved to the edge of the cliff and looked down to see three mermaids sitting on the rocks below. Emma assumed it was one of them that had propelled itself up toward them, but no longer did any of them resemble that creature. The mermaids were back in their daytime form. All of them looked just like a human with a giant fin for legs. Golden scales covered their breasts and all three of them had a different color of hair.

"You just tried to attack us." Emma accused, her voice stern.

The mermaid with deep, purple hair spoke up, giggling, "We were just having some fun."

"There's nothing wrong with that," the orange haired one argued with an indignant sniff. Emma guessed she was the one she had beaten.

After she and Killian casted each other identical skeptical glances, Killian leaned down over his knee and grinned down at the mermaids. "Hello, ladies," he called warmly, and in Emma's opinion, was trying way too hard to be charming, "I'm-"

"Captain Hook," the one with the black hair interjected with a coy smirk, "We recognize you from your ship."

"We used to see you sailing all the time," the indigo haired mermaid said, her voice dragging with longing.

The one who had attacked them pouted, "But you usually never sailed near us."

"With good reason," Killian countered with a jovial laugh, looking pleased, "it seems."

Thank you mermaids, for boosting his obnoxious ego even more. Emma heard one of them giggle again, "We're harmless."

"Please." Emma sarcastically muttered to Killian, rolling her green eyes.

Ignoring her comment, Killian indicated to her with a flourishing wave, "And this is Princess Emma," he raved enthusiastically.

"_Princess_ Emma?" Emma reeled, hissing under her breath at him. Revealing her identity was not something they had discussed, even if it was a fact Emma was particularly indifferent about.

"A Princess?" one of them repeated excitedly. Emma was too busy trying to kill Killian with her piercing glare to notice which one.

Killian kept grinning but his sea blue eyes flashed dangerously at her, "Keep smiling," he ordered through his teeth. Okay, so he was under the assumption that they weren't out of the woods yet. Were the mermaids only acting friendly because she had bested them with her magic? But why tell them she was a princess? You didn't have to have someone completely wrapped around your finger to get something from them.

"I love princesses!" one of the mermaids gushed.

"_And_ she's a princess with magic!" the black haired one quipped merrily, clapping her hands together.

"I don't know if it's really-" Emma began, modesty and panic rising up in her. If they wanted to see her magic again, Emma wasn't sure she would be able to.

The Attacker, Emma's current nickname for her, narrowed her eyes, "Tell me, how do you feel about pixies?"

"She hates them." Killian loudly interjected before Emma could speak, "As do I. Now what are all you beauties names?"

Getting irritated with his attempt at flirty banter, Emma turned to face him, harshly reprimanding, "You're laying it on a little thick."

"It's working, isn't it?" Killian shot back testily.

The black haired one on the very left introduced herself first, "I'm Voona."

"Oola," the Attacker stated flatly.

"You can call me Numi," the one with the violet hair said, her eyes only on Killian. Emma wondered how to break it to her that he wouldn't come anywhere near that water even if his life depended on it.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all." Killian said lively, smirking and bowing to them slightly.

Wanting to get to the point, Emma bluntly asked the mermaids, "Is this a bottomless ocean?"

"And there goes my work," Killian whispered as he closed his eyes dramatically, annoyance and accusation in his voice, "shattered in an instant."

The mermaids stole glances at each other and were silent until Voona reluctantly spoke up, saying, "In a way."

"What does that mean?" Emma asked evenly.

"If you keep swimming down to its deepest point," Numi relayed as she started dipping her tail in the water, her voice coy, "you'll eventually find yourself swimming up from it."

Emma turned to Killian, astonishment and understanding written on her face, and said, "It's bottomless because the bottom is a portal."

"Didn't see that one coming," Killian confessed briskly under his breath. He looked down at the mermaids again and waved a hand, "Do you swim back and forth a lot?" he asked engagingly.

"No, it used to be too dangerous," Oola explained knowledgeably.

Numi interjected, her voice blissful, "And we love Neverland."

"Used to?" Emma questioned Oola, eyebrows raised.

"It used to be guarded by a sea witch and even though she is dead now, we don't go there very often," Oola scrunched her nose distastefully, "The mermaids on the other side are different."

"Some of the them even fall in love with humans!" Voona snorted, clearly appalled, causing all of three of them to break into a fit of giggles.

"Ladies," Killian chastised, raising his voice to get them to focus again, "We seek an ink from a very rare species of squid that is said to reside near this portal."

"The sea witch," Oola reiterated, obviously starting to become uninterested in their conversation as she now began to pick at her scales.

"You said she was dead." Killian pointed out, boredom and annoyance now creeping into his voice. He began to rub the back of his neck.

Confused, Emma asked, "Is she not a mermaid?"

Shaking her head, Numi informed, "No. Half human, half squid."

"So a mersquid?" Emma pondered, brainstorming aloud to Killian.

A look of contemplation washing over his features, Killian frowned and suggested, "Squidmaid?"

Gasping excitedly, Voona gossiped "One of the mermaids one the other side is rumored to have killed her."

Oola snickered, hooting "Yeah, for true love!"

"I think it's romantic," Numi objected as her eyes glazed over dreamily.

"Is there not any more of her kind to still get the ink from?" Killian promptly debated.

"No," Oola replied. Emma saw an idea flash over her face as she hinted, "But her lair is still there."

"Yes," Voona agreed, a conspiratorial smile slowing forming on her face, "I believe there might still be some bottles of ink."

With an obnoxious gasp, Numi added, "I think I do remember seeing some."

"Could you acquire some for us?" Killian implored eagerly.

"Yes." Numi earnestly said sweetly.

Oola shot her a look, "Maybe." Hm, maybe she would like Oola after all.

"But why would we swim down there and risk ending up on the other side with those other mermaids?" Voona coyly relented.

"What do you want?" Killian countered, his voice polite and ready for negotiations.

Emma stared at him outrageously, hastily asking, "What do we even have?" She pursed her lips in frustration. Oh right, his revenge was more important to him than his life, how could she forget.

The mermaids shared conspiratorial glances before Voona stated, "Pixie dust."

Eyebrows shooting up, Emma deadpanned, "Seriously?" Weren't pixies anti-mermaid? And mermaids anti-pixies? She could already tell that this was headed nowhere good.

"Bloody brilliant," Killian muttered with a frustrated sigh, barely loud enough for Emma to hear.

Oola deliberately nodded, "Yes, that's our price."

"Pixie dust." Numi confirmed daintily, splashing water with her tail.

"Fine." Killian agreed smoothly with a small relenting smile, "You've got a deal."

"Are you crazy?" Emma frenetically whispered to him. Wasn't that the one thing he warned her about?

Killian wrapped an arm around her shoulders to roughly pull her closer to him. It would seem like a friendly gesture to the mermaids, but the way he started to tightly squeeze her, Emma knew it was her warning to keep her opinions to herself for now. "As you can see this, this little lady is impatient to get home," he chided, "She's got a lot of princessy duties to attend to."

"Like a ball?" Numi gleefully questioned.

Voona started to jabber with interest, "Do you have a tiara?"

His voice commanding, Killian keenly implored, "You think you can swim down and get that ink before sunset?"

Oola raised an eyebrow at them, her voice lofty as she answered, "Possibly."

"If you do, I'll be here with your dust," Killian instructed, his demeanor serious, "If you don't, Princess Emma will show you a lot more magic than just a shield," he cautioned with intent intimidation.

"I'm going to kill you," Emma hissed threateningly in his ear. Had she not made it clear that she didn't know how to control her magic?

"Better get a move on then," Voona said slyly as she hopped into the water and snapped a finger, "Shall we, girls?"

The moment the mermaids jumped into the water, Killian let go of Emma and threw his head back, letting out a deep and tired sigh. Taking advantage of the situation, Emma roughly punched Killian's arm as hard she could.

"Ow!" Killian howled as he quickly shot away from her, staring at her incredulously, growling, "What the bloody hell was that for?"

"You said the mermaids and the pixies hate each other," Emma screeched. She was going to throw him to the mermaids herself if they ended up starting some kind of civil war in Neverland while they were here.

Killian glowered at her. "They do," he retorted.

"So why are we getting in the middle of their little war?" Emma interrogated, fuming.

"We aren't," Killian explained, projecting wisdom, "the mermaids just want the dust to taunt the pixies with and we'll be long gone before that happens."

Incredulous, Emma asked, "How do you know that?"

"Key word: sunset," Killian articulated, elaborating condescendingly, "After that, they'll be at mercy to the moon until sunrise."

Okay, Emma could see his point. They would just have to make sure they were out of Neverland before the sun came up. But they still had to get the pixie dust somehow, and Emma wasn't too keen on the idea of possibly running into Vidia again. "So what exactly is the plan then?" Emma ranted irately, "Are we just going to sail right up to Pixie Hollow, find a random pixie, and somehow convince them to give us some dust?"

"We're not going to get the dust from the pixies," Killian related as he sent her a sharp look.

Emma scoffed, her voice dry and speculating as she replied, "Then whom are we going to get it from?"

"The Picaninnys."

"The natives?" Emma sputtered, taken aback. That was not what she had been expecting.

With confidence, he stated, "They'll have some,"

"What makes you so sure?" Emma snapped.

"It's like," Killian paused, searching for explanation, "common knowledge here," he sputtered with frustration.

"And what do we have to trade with them?"

"Let's find them first and find out, shall we?" Killian suggested through gritted teeth. Emma let out a nervous breath, causing him to roll his eyes, "Relax."

Holding up her hands warily, Emma distressfully gushed, "I somehow created shield back there."

"And it was impressive," Killian recalled, a fond smile forming on his lips.

"To you, maybe," Emma irately argued. Her voice started to turn hysterical, "But it's a little terrifying to me."

"Why?" he quizzically shot back, his eyes roaming her face concernedly, "It helped us back there with the mermaids," Killian reminded, "Do you really think they would have helped us if you hadn't gained their respect with it?"

"And you threatening them with it?" Emma fretted, not listening to him, "it's not like I can just whip it out on command."

"They don't know that," Killian stressed, grabbing her arms to get her to stay still, "But they have seen how powerful you are with just a shield so they're not going to risk it."

"I don't know even know how I did it, though," Emma blurted weakly, "I don't even really know what this magic is!"

"That is something you can figure out, once we get back to the Enchanted Forest," he urgently persuaded, "But we won't be able to go back there, until we get the ink," Killian coaxingly advised, "We need to stay focused on the task at hand."

"You're right," Emma sighed, trying to keep the queasiness forming in her stomach down, "I'll try to keep it under control."

After giving her a reassuring smile, his face turned permissible. "But I mean," Killian corrected, "don't be afraid use it if anything like that happens again."

"I'll keep that in mind," Emma sneered.

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Using the forest as cover, Emma and Killian observed the Picaninnys from a distance, the afternoon heat bearing down on them. It had taken another lengthy trek across Neverland to get to the plains and Emma was starting to lose steam. The sooner they got back to the Enchanted Forest, the better. The natives all looked alike, with olive skin and dark hair. They all seemed so normal as they carried on their day-to-day activities outside of makeshift tents. Emma could see a group of women talking and laughing, two men training with swords, and another group making some arrows. They did seem to have a lot of weapons lying around the camp now that she noticed. She glanced over at Killian. Maybe that's why he seemed so tense.

"They're not what I expected." Emma declared absentmindedly as she observed the natives.

"Nothing ever is," Killian sighed. He gave her a sideways look, quipping, "I think it's best if you let me do all the talking."

Emma raised an eyebrow at him, challenging him saying, "Are you going to take off your hook?"

"What?" Killian stared at her outrageously, his voice appalled, "No. Why would I do that?"

"It doesn't really scream 'I come in peace,' does it?" she chidingly commented.

Grimacing at her, Killian caustically interjected, "I don't need to 'come in peace' to offer them a deal."

"But if they like us, we have a better chance of getting them to agree," Emma argued rationally, "You can't always use intimidation to get what you want." She rolled her eyes, thinking of the mermaids and how he had tried to charm them, adding, "At least when it comes to men."

Looking her over with a criticizing eye, Killian judgingly said, "If getting them to like you was your goal, you should have kept wearing that dress." Emma fumed. He was still bringing up that scratchy, uncomfortable green dress? Since they were still hiding in the trees, instead of hitting him like she wanted too, Emma settled for irately pinching his arm. Startled, Killian outrageously pulled his arm way, "Watch it," he warned darkly.

"Well stop bringing up my clothes," Emma ordered crossly.

Killian briskly countered, "I will when you start dressing better."

After quietly growling at him, Emma started to move. "Let's just get this over with," she stated flatly.

He stood up after her and brushed himself off. "Follow my lead," Killian instructed, whispering to her as the natives began to notice their approach. The natives standing around turned silent and began to part as the walked forward into the camp, all activity Emma had observed gone. Their faces were wary and curious. The further in they got, though, the more Emma noticed they were just staring at her.

"Why are they all staring?" Emma asked woefully, her hand subconsciously moving to her sword.

He cautiously looked around. "It's your hair," Killian amusedly surmised after a moment.

Bewildered, Emma repeated, "My hair?"

"Do you see any other blondes around here?" he pointed out, his voice suddenly terse. Geez, she was just asking. Their stares were creepy. But he was right. Emma saw nothing but black and brown hair.

They walked into the center of the camp where they were met by two men standing defiantly out from the rest of the camp. Both had muscular builds and were wearing nothing but tan cloth pants; piercing and tattoos covered their faces and chests. The two men said nothing as they approached. After a minute of silence, Killian broke the awkward tension with a warm proclamation, "Hello, mates."

"Hi." Emma muttered flatly when the two men remained silent. She could see Killian give her an exasperated look from the corner of her eye.

Seconds passed and there was nothing but startled and curious stares. "We've come to speak to your chief." Killian proclaimed as he tried to project friendliness. Emma saw the two men glance down at his hook. Yeah, should've taken it off, buddy. Nevertheless, without a word, they walked forward to strip them of their swords, much to Emma's dismay, before striding into a tent in the back. Within a few moments, the men returned, accompanied by a tall, burly Picaninny with numerous tattoos and graying hair. The Chief. He wore an outfit much more elaborate than any of the others and golden bracelets covered his arms. The Chief came to stand in front of them, his face blank and emotionless as he nodded solemnly at her and Killian.

"Me and my companion here," Killian said, his voice level and complimentary, "we've come to trade with you fine people."

The Chief studied him critically before replying, his voice deep and resonating, "What do you want?"

Shrugging indifferently, Killian coolly replied, "Pixie dust."

The Picaninnys starting talking in hushed voices almost immediately. Emma turned to watch them with befuddlement. Okay, these people were weird. The Chief eyed his people before answering. "Why don't you go to the pixies?" the Chief ventured. Yes, Killian, why don't we go to the Pixies?

"The pixies and I don't really get along," Killian reluctantly volunteered with a small chuckle, "Just a misunderstanding, really," he stressed. Emma wasn't surprised. She wondered how Vidia was specifically involved, if at all.

With a short nod, The Chief sent one of his guards away. The man returned shortly with a small bottle in his hands. "And what have you brought for us in return?"

"What do you want?" Killian bargained tensely. Emma sent him a quizzical look. Was there something she didn't know?

After sharing a look with some of the men, the Chief's steely black eyes landed on Emma. "Her."

"Excuse me?" Emma sputtered, panic rising up in her voice. Hell no. No, no, no. She started to mentally prepare her speech so that she could pull the princess card. Was the chief considered a fellow royal?

"I'm sorry," Killian apologized stiffly, "can you be a little more specific?" Emma wanted to throttle him. How can they be any more specific? He was clearly staring right at her. Do something, Hook. It's not like he could just _trade_ her.

"Her." The Chief repeated sternly as he pointed at her.

Emma jumped forward. "No! no," she laughed breathlessly. This had to be a joke, right? "I'm afraid that's out of the question," Emma stated reproachfully. Damn it, which one had taken her sword again?

"Fine." Hook replied evenly, "Deal."

"What?" Emma gasped outrageously as she watched Hook walk up to the Chief to collect the bottle of pixie dust. "No deal," she protested furiously. No, this could not be happening. He couldn't do this to her. He wouldn't. Right? All at once she was surrounded by Picaninnys who were grabbing and restraining her. Emma did her best to fight back but she was outnumbered. She tried to focus on her magic and somehow will it out of hands or to shoot out of her chest or something. There was nothing.

Hook casually grabbed his sword back from one of the Picaninnys.

"Hook!" Emma screamed as she started to get dragged off into one of the tents.

He started to walk away from the camp, not once looking back.

"HOOK!"

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Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it!

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What do you guys think?

Is Hook serious in leaving her there since revenge is still his number one priority? Or does Killian have a back up plan?

Or will Hook turn around and be like LOL JUST KIDDING and start slashing random Picaninnys with his hook?

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And so you won't hate me: all may not be as it seems ;)

Love you all! Please leave a review if you can!

If you want to follow me on tumblr my username is suddenlyamy

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And since it is Christmas Eve…. I'll post some sneak peeks :)

**Next chapter summary**: Emma's magic says WHADDUP, Smee has a brief shining moment, and a vindictive pixie makes a reappearance.

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**Dialogue from future chapters** (like many chapters in the future) that I also posted on my tumblr but for those who don't follow me, here it is:

Charming: What exactly do you want from her?

Rumplestiltskin: A favor

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Pinocchio: You're supposed to be dead

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Emma: I don't know what you may have seen, but things between us are over.

Regina: Well that's where my proposition comes in.

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Hook: What did you do?

Rumplestiltskin: How does that saying go again? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me

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Hook: There's one more thing I need to tell you, in case something goes wrong in Oz

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And since I've recently become obsessed with talking in sarcastic/troll language (is that what you would call it? haha) here's this dialogue I translated for fun:

Regina: How sweet.

Hook: Really? So you'll let us-

Regina: JK LOL Remember that time you broke into my castle

Regina: Stole my hat

Regina: Took my father's heart

Regina: Deprived me of a curse I had been planning to cast for years

Hook: …

Regina: …

Hook: LOL NOPE WASN'T ME


	7. Chapter Six

Hey everyone! :) Thank you so much for all the reviews, follows, and favorites! You are what keeps me writing! And since I was probably a little harsh with that last cliffhanger, I'm uploading two chapters so I don't do that to you with this chapter.

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**Chapter Six**

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Emma sat tied to the center pole of a small tent. Her hands behind her back, encircling the pole. The Picaninnys had left her in here alone and she wasn't entirely sure how much time had passed. She banged her head against the pole, trying to let out some of her frustration. The knot in her chest was overwhelming and she had been willing herself not to cry. She had been such a fool to start to let her guard down around Hook. Stupid, backstabbing pirate. Emma wanted to beat him senseless. How could he do this to her? While they had clashed, a lot, Emma truly thought things were going well between them. She thought they had understood each other and that maybe… Emma stopped herself from going there. It didn't matter what she had thought anymore because she had been wrong, apparently. Mortification rushed through her as she thought about all she had told him. He was probably laughing at her in his head the entire time. Now he was off to get the ink and was probably going to take his eager little buddy Smee back through the portal to the Enchanted Forest with him. Maybe her parents would be able to find a portal and come and get her. That request had already been a long shot, though; portals were rare these days.

She should've done what that pixie told her to, also. Vidia had been right and Emma should've listened to her advise about Hook. Maybe this whole situation could have been avoided if she had. Emma struggled with the ropes tied around her hands, trying to loosen them, but it was useless. She had tried to use her magic in some way but nothing would come. It was like it weighted down by the anger and hurt staggering through her. No, she was stronger than this. She wouldn't let some rum drinking, womanizing pirate with a hook for a hand stop her from getting home and break her like this. She wouldn't sit here and feel sorry for herself. She could, and would, get out of this, damn it. Emma bended her leg and tried to reach the knife that had been hidden in her boot again. After an agonizing reach, an idea popped in her head. Trying to be as quiet as she could, Emma carefully kicked off her boot and used her foot to drag it back far enough to where her hands could reach. With a relieved grin, Emma felt inside her boot, found the knife, and blindly began to cut and chafe at the ropes, doing her best to not cut herself in the process. When she heard activity close to the tent, Emma began to panic and sped up what she was doing. Popping to her feet when the ropes came loose, Emma stuffed her boot back on and moved to the side of the entrance of the tent, waiting for someone to come back in and check on her.

Moments later, one of the Picaninny men strode into the tent. He paused when he saw their prisoner wasn't there. Taking the opportunity, Emma jumped behind and held her knife at his throat. "Don't even think about trying to fight back," Emma whispered threateningly, radiating confidence. Combat was like second nature to her, "Now how do I get out of here?"

The man didn't listen to her and he flipped around, trying to knock her knife out of his hand. Emma kicked him in the chest, causing him to stagger backwards some, but not enough to flatten him completely. Okay, maybe she had underestimated the Picaninnys. He rushed his fists toward her and tried to hit her on the head, but Emma dodged it. He may be stronger, but she was more motivated. She had to get back to the Enchanted Forest, if only to be back with her family and to spite Hook's plans of leaving her here. As her will got stronger, the magic inside of her became active again. Emma could feel it practically buzzing now, readying itself to be used. When he moved to attack again, a beam of light shot of her hand. It hit the man square in the chest and sent him tumbling to the ground. Whoa. Emma didn't know if she freaked out or ecstatic. Maybe having magic wasn't so bad after all. If only she could figure out how to control it. She crept toward the man and saw that he was unconscious.

Now what? She couldn't risk trying to sneak away from the camp with just her knife. There had been too many natives walking around the camp earlier; someone would surely spot her. And even if she did escape undetected, she didn't want the natives hunting her down when she was already going to be busy hunting down a certain captain. The only way she was going to get out of this safely was to be formally released. It was time to pay the Chief a visit. Emma carefully pried the bow and arrows off the Picaninnys back, trying not to wake him. She still wasn't completely sure how long her magic would keep him knocked out.

Emma peaked through the folds of the tent opening. She could tell she was on the very left far side of the camp. There weren't too many Picaninnys out, but the majority of them were in front of the back middle tent, the tent she remembered the Chief had come out of.

Deciding to take the back way, she lifted up the heavy, clothe back wall and crawled under to the outside. Emma sprinted from tent to tent when she was sure no one was looking. When she got to the middle tent, which was at least three times bigger than any of the others, no one noticed her sneak in until she had the bow pointed right at the back of the Chief's head.

"No one move," Emma sternly ordered to the other natives in the tent. She counted at least eight. Her attention turned to the Chief, "I want you to formally release me and order that no one tries to follow me when I leave."

Without any movement or any attempt to turn to face her, the Chief gave a flat, "No."

Emma saw a Picaninny across the tent move to pull out an arrow from his own pack, but before he could, Emma swiftly shot an arrow at him. "The next one is aimed at your heart," she snarled when the arrow struck the wooden pole right beside his head, and quickly pulled out another one, pressing it directly to the Chief's head now, "Release me."

There was a long moment of tense silence. "I release you," the Chief reluctantly conceded, his voice commanding, "No one goes after her."

"Thank you," Emma replied contemptuously. She couldn't wait to get the hell out of here, but there was one more thing she couldn't leave without, "Now where's my sword?"

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* * *

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Emma was doubled over and panting when the Jolly Roger finally came into view. The sun was already almost all the way down and she had been sprinting her way through Neverland to try to find Hook before he could leave. She was sure he had already acquired the ink by now. There was no way he would risk being at the Mermaid's Lagoon minutes away from when they would fully turn into sirens. After a deep, determined breath, Emma continued her sprint to the docks.

She ferociously marched on board the ship, looking slightly hysterical. "Where is Hook?" she bellowed menacingly as the whole crew stopped what they were doing and stared at her outrageously. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

"Your Maj- Emma," Smee blurted out as he stepped from the stern of the ship, looking stunned, "What are you doing here?"

"Where's Hook?" Emma snarled acidly, her sword out and ready. She was going to make him wish he had never been born.

His voice disbelieving, Smee sputtered, "You're supposed to be with the natives."

"Am I the only person on this entire godforsaken island who didn't know Hook was planning to betray me?" Emma snapped, trying to hide her hurt and humiliation.

"Betray you?" Smee protested, looking confused.

"I can't believe you have the nerve to look surprised," Emma said, fuming, and sneered contemptuously, "He's your captain"

"He didn't plan on leaving you there. He already had me and the crew acquire Tiger Lily to trade for your release while he went to deal with mermaids," Smee explained fiercely.

"What?" Emma deadpanned. It was her turn to be stunned. He had planned on getting her back? She thought back on how many weapons had been lying around the natives' camp and how her and Hook had been truly outnumbered, and Emma mentally smacked herself, feeling relief and maybe a little shame. She should have realized that before. Especially when she remembered how tense he had been before they had approached the Picaninnys. At that thought, Emma felt her frustration with him start to rise again, though not as much as before. Those are suspicions you definitely share and _discuss_. She wasn't a damn mind reader.

"It's suppose to happen an hour after sunset at the old Black Castle," Smee offered frantically.

Emma let out another deep, reassuring breath. Hook didn't really betray her. She was surprised at how much relief she felt. As she thought through what Smee has said again, she furiously implored, "Who the hell is Tiger Lily?"

"The Chief's daughter," Smee answered hastily. That was definitely not good.

"It's sunset now," Emma murmured as she glanced at the sun that was barely peaking over the horizon. There was no way she could make it to that castle on foot in an hour. All of a sudden, Smee was walking away from her and yelling orders at the crew. "What are you doing?" Emma asked, jogging to catch up with him.

"You've got to get to that trade quick or there's going to be some slaughter Picaninnys are our hands," Smee told her, his voice filled with warning and caution, "You wouldn't want that, would you?"

"No," Emma breathed, smiling, "How can I help?"

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Arms aching, Emma pulled the dingy she had rowed to shore in up onto the beach. Smee had commanded the Jolly Roger as close to the Black Castle as he could get, but she would have to find the rest of the way on her own. She couldn't believe her life. The pirate whose name she was cursing hours before was now the one she was rushing to help.

Sprinting up to the dark, castle ruins, Emma climbed up the side wall as she spotted an entrance. Heaving herself up, she peaked in and saw that she was on the second floor. She spotted Hook who was menacingly standing in front of a tied up girl, who Emma assumed was Tiger Lily, while a large group of Picaninny men glared him down. She couldn't hear what Hook was saying but whatever it was, he looked absolutely furious. This was crazy.

"Hook!" Emma yelled, trying to get his attention, but at that moment, the Picaninny men rushed forward in attack. So much for a peaceful hostage exchange.

With an annoyed growl, she ran and climbed her away across the ruins toward him, whipping out her sword before jumping in to help fight off the natives. He looked startled for only a moment before he exasperatedly rolled his eyes at her.

"You just had to take matters into your own hands, didn't you?" Hook irately sneered as he fought off two burly Picaninnys.

Emma kicked one of the men away from her as she gasped incredulously, looking outraged, "I can't believe you just handed me over to them!"

"It was only temporary," Hook argued defiantly, trying to vindicate himself over the clash of the swords echoing through the castle ruins, "I always planned on getting you back."

Emma hotly replied, "And that's suppose to somehow make it okay?"

"Yes," Hook hissed, annoyance rippling through his voice, as more Picaninnys seemed to appear ready to fight. Even though she and Hook were holding their ground, they were already fighting outnumbered and the day's strenuous activities were wearing down Emma's patience.

Seeing that all this fighting was going nowhere and was going to take forever, Emma growled, "This is ridiculous." It was time to get back to the Enchanted Forest. She furiously marched over to Hook and roughly grabbed his arm as a wave of magic erupted from her chest, sending all the Picaninnys flying to the floor unconscious. Relief and exhilaration flowed through Emma as she realized she had successfully summoned her magic. There was a moment of silence as her and Hook surveyed her work.

Hook raised an impressed eyebrow, "Couldn't you have started off with that, darling?"

"Are you really going to try pushing your luck right now?" Emma snapped. Just because she learned that he was never really going to betray her, it didn't mean he was completely back in her good graces. He had still put her through unwanted emotional stress. She sighed, "Did you get the ink?"

"The mermaids were disappointed you weren't there," Hook jested, his voice taunting, as he pulled out the canister of ink from his pocket to show her.

"I'm sure." Emma replied caustically as he put the ink away again.

There was another long silence as a moment of understanding passed between them. Yes, all was forgiven. It was Hook who may have been able to leave her there, but it was Killian who always coming back for her.

Scratching the side of his neck, Killian suggested, "We better start making our way toward the portal before they wake up."

"Good idea," she muttered before taking one last look at the unconscious Picaninnys and following him out of the ruins.

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"How will we get to the portal?" Emma asked inquisitively as they quickly made their way to the waterfall. The portal had been located behind it, in a cave, with no other entrances. Not that she was skeptical, or anything…

"It won't be easy," Killian answered briskly due to their pace, "I'll have to show you when we get there." She heard him swear before she noticed he wasn't by her side anymore. "Emma." Killian's voice was rigid and solemn as he called out to her.

Emma swiftly turned around and stared at him with confusion. "What?" she inquired, a little out of breath. Why was he just standing there?

"I can't move." Killian angrily muttered but Emma could see a bit of hidden panic flash through his eyes.

"Why?" Emma questioned, filled with caution, as she took a step toward him. A familiar voice stopped her, though, and Emma startlingly whipped around to face a small, purple glow.

"He walked straight into a pixie ring," Vidia explained, her voice smug and eager, "If he steps outside it, he'll die."

Emma turned and studied the ground around Killian. Sure enough, there was a small ring of mushrooms around him that wouldn't be visible or noticeable unless someone was specifically looking. Emma swallowed down the dread that was forming painfully in her throat. She had heard of those before, and even though she had never seen one, she knew this was definitely not good. There was no way she was leaving Neverland without Killian, though, and she would make that annoying little pixie free him if it was the last thing she did. "Then break it." Emma commanded, her nostrils flaring. She tensed her stance, readying herself for a fight. As much fun and completely exhausting their short-lived adventure had been, no one was going to stop her from leaving this place.

"No," Vidia narrowed her vicious eyes as she raggedly lectured, "All of this would of have been a lot easier if you had just betrayed him like you were supposed to."

"That's new information," Killian quipped from behind her.

"I was never going to do that," Emma protested, still facing the fairy with a snarl on her face, "and you're an idiot if you thought I would." Determination washing over her face, Emma defiantly ordered, emphasizing every word, "Now break the ring."

"I'm not letting him leave Neverland unpunished," Vidia railed, her voice shrill and cruel, "He deserves what he gets."

His voice stressed, Killian interjected, "Emma, now would be a good time to, you know…"

Emma ignored him, for now, knowing he was hinting about her magic. She would try to summon her magic as a last resort. Key word: try. She still couldn't be sure if what had happened with the natives was a fluke or not. This was new to her. Emma kept her eyes trained on Vidia, reproachfully inquiring, "Why?"

"He tricked me into giving him all my dust so he could travel back to the Enchanted Forest," Vidia recalled bitterly and continued to jabber, "Now I'm laughing stock of the pixies and no one trusts me with anything. I almost lost my wings."

"I'm sorry he tricked you," Emma said, apologizing for him. She tried to keep her voice calm as she pleaded, "But I can't leave without him."

Vidia smirked haughtily at her, coldly replying, "Looks like you're just going to have to stay here too."

Fury rising, Emma balled her fists, glaring balefully at Vidia. This pixie made the Blue Fairy look like a saint.

"Emma, use your magic." Killian urged madly now, not bothering to stay discreet in front of Vidia anymore. Emma tried to will something to start sparking out of her fist, but the nervous tension in her chest and her anxiety that stemmed from its tendency to be unpredictable was clouding her concentration.

"Please, its not like she has any control over it," the fairy jeered, snickering, "you don't even know what you are exactly, do you? Now step aside," Vidia hissed as she raised her wand.

"No," Emma boldly declared. Before she had time to pull out her sword, Emma was hastily dodging an explosion of pixie dust that was directed at her. Vidia maniacally giggled and fiercely attacked again. Emma dived to the side, barely managing to escape the blast.

"Emma, what are you waiting for?" Killian roared irately as Emma painfully tumbled to the ground. Huffing, Emma shot to her feet just as Vidia turned her attention to Killian, a wicked gleam echoing in her beady pixie eyes as she raised her wand.

In a panic, Emma suddenly jumped in front of him. A burst of magic shot out of her hands and created globe like shield similar to what she had done at the Mermaid's Lagoon.

She heard Killian let out a sigh of relief. "About bloody time," he growled.

"Shut up," Emma snapped as she concentrated on keeping up the shield. Just stay focused. Vidia's eyes were blazing angrily as she continued to shoot more pixie dust at them with more fervently.

"I know you're busy concentrating, love, but can you do anything maybe a bit more offensive?" Killian asked, his voice tense and anxious. Emma wanted to object and rant about how this wasn't as easy as it looked, but as she felt her strength start to wane, she knew he was right. She couldn't do this forever.

Vidia hooted loftily, "I'd like to see her try. She won't be able to fight me off for too much longer."

That was it. This bitch was going down. With unprecedented confidence, Emma suddenly dropped the shield and shot a beam of light directly at Vidia before the pixie had any time to react. With a howling screech, Vidia crazily flew through the air before she roughly smacked against a tree and dropped to the ground. Emma couldn't stop a smug smirk from forming on her face. She turned around and with another blast magic, destroyed the ring around Killian.

"Now that's more like it," Killian marveled, his voice triumphant as he stepped outside the broken ring. Emma faltered slightly, her body still recovering from the outburst and use of magic. Killian steadily grabbed her arm and studied her with concern. "Are you okay?" He implored.

Emma nodded weakly. "Yeah," she said, still a little breathless as adrenaline continued to pump wildly through her veins.

"Good," Killian said as he glanced over at Vidia's passed out form, "let's get out of here."

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* * *

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At the top of the waterfall, Killian was tugging on a rope that was securely tied to one of the trees near the ledge. "We'll have to lower ourselves down on this rope," he told her as pointed down the side of cliff, "and then propel ourselves into the cave."

"Simple enough," Emma muttered, when in all reality it couldn't be more complicated. She studied the length of the waterfall to her right, trying to figure out where the cave opening was. "How do I know where to jump off from?"

"I have it marked. You'll see it." Killian patiently explained as he started to tie the rope around his waist and the back of his legs, "Because of this," he held up his hook, "I usually have to have someone help lower me down."

Emma nodded. "I can do that," she said, taking the free part of the rope in her hands.

"That means that once I get inside the cave," Killian went on, his voice serious, "you'll have to scale down the cliff by yourself."

As she leaned over the edge, the rocks seemed more menacing and steeper than they did before against the moonlight. "I think I can do that," she reiterated, trying not to sound too panicked.

"You'll be fine," Killian reassured, resonating confidence in his voice, "Just concentrate on your footing and take your time."

"What if I fall?" Emma pondered worriedly, glancing down at the water below as she remembered the intense, suffocating, and burning feeling of drowning. And if he was already in the waterfall, he probably wouldn't be able to realize she had fallen until it was too late.

"You're not going to fall." Killian countered, his voice stern and his piercing blue eyes intent. Emma took a steadying breath. He was right. She could do this.

Emma grabbed the rope and waited until he had gone over the edge of the cliff before she started to lower him down. Killian paused and looked up at her, ordering, "Watch what I do and do exactly the same."

"Okay."

He went about twenty more feet before stopping. "I'll be waiting on the other side," Killian called before he sprung off the side of the cliff and propelled his body into the waterfall, disappearing. The rope swung out from water seconds later.

Pulling the rope back up, Emma tried to figure out the best way to go about it. She took a deep breath. Everything would be fine. She could do this. Tying the rope around her waist, Emma cautiously crawled over the edge and attempted to climb down. The rocks harshly bit in her palms as she tried to keep from shaking. She closed her eyes and attempted to push back her nervousness. Just one rock at a time.

Emma sneaked a look at the water below. She was screwed if she fell. The rope didn't look sturdy enough to hold her if she stumbled and she still hadn't learned how to swim. Something she was definitely going to practice when she got back home.

After a few moments of a successful scaling, Emma placed her foot on a loose rock. Her heart leapt to her throat as she started to fly downward. Tightening her grip and pressing herself against the rocks, Emma managed to claw her way to a stop, but her forehead painfully scraped against cliff. With her heartbeat flying and pounding in her ears, she took a moment to gather her bearings. The gash on her forehead seared agonizingly and her hands throbbed. She just had to go a little bit further.

Climbing a few more feet, her eyes landed on a white mark. Figuring it was Killian's mark, Emma steadied herself before reaching down to untie the rope around her waist. She would swing on it like a vine into the cave instead of leaving it tied and risk getting pulled back out again.

On the count of three, Emma used all her strength to kick herself off the cliff, doing her best to aim for the center of the waterfall to her left. After a brief moment of weightlessness, she was momentarily pounded by heavy, rushing water before she felt air again and was securely grabbed by a pair of arms.

Emma quickly released the rope and gripped Killian's shoulders in an attempt to steady herself. Looking up at him, she began to laugh breathlessly; her head buzzing and her heart ready to burst with the adrenaline and elation from them successfully making it to this point alive and with the ink. His sea blue eyes shining, Killian grinned back at her.

Killian brought his hand up to her face and started to thumb away the blood Emma knew was staining her forehead. The intensity of his gaze set off electrifying impulses in her stomach. Emma's heart started pounding as the air started to thicken and her breathing became shallow. She was nervous and petrified and hopeful. If she was being honest, she wasn't even that surprised. Maybe deep down she had always known that her wanting this, him, was inevitable. Fixing her eyes on his lips, she counted the drops of water resting on them that were still tumbling down from his hair. His lips were a breath away and everything inside Emma was on fire already. She was transfixed. She wasn't even sure if she could breathe. Without knowing who moved first, Emma felt his lips on hers and her head began to spin with delirium. One taste was all it took for her to suddenly know she would never be able to get enough. She was a mess of life and lightning, and hot and cold, and her heart turned erratic as the kiss took on the pace of a fervent urgency Emma had never known. Killian's fingers laced in her hair as his palm cupped her neck, his thumb tenderly grazing over her pulse point. It left a trail of fire down her neck and sent shivers down her spine. Emma gasped for oxygen as the kiss broke and she opened her eyes to see them both drenched in water and exhilaration of the moment. He closed his eyes and took one ragged, steadying breath. Her heart was drumming so rapidly in her chest it was beginning to ache. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt like this, if she had ever truly felt like this. Seeing him start to smile, Emma couldn't help but start beaming back at him, her breath hitching.

"Let's get you home," he breathed, his voice low and throaty. There was unfathomable expression in his blue eyes and for once, he was unreadable to her. Emma wished she knew what he was thinking about. Afraid of what his answer might be, Emma just nodded and took his hand as he led her out of the cave and back into the small, dusty room where the hat lay.

"We made it."

"You were brilliant," Killian complimented, grinning at her. He reached down and started to put the hat away.

Feeling awkward just standing there watching him and a little confused of what that kiss meant for their relationship, Emma looked around the room in search of something to do. Seeing the covered mirror, she hastily walked over to it. "I'm not even sure if I really want to know what I look like but-"

"Emma-"

She pulled off the sheet covering a dusty full-length mirror. "Definitely rougher than I imagined," Emma winced as she observed the dried, cakey blood on her forehead and her tangled, damp blonde hair. She cautiously touched the gash above her left eye, muttering, "My parents are going to flip." Catching his eye in the mirror, she asked, "What happens now?"

Something wasn't right. Emma turned and gave him a puzzled look. Killian was silent as everything about him seemed to darken. "What's wrong?" she asked, walking toward him in concern and cautiousness.

"I'm sorry, Princess," he said coldly, "but there's still much to be done."

She saw his arm start to swing and before she could protest, everything went black.

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2 hours later - Emma wakes up and her head is throbbing. Pain radiates from her right temple; she's not in the basement room anymore, but the bedroom upstairs she had walked into when they had first arrived and then she remembers Hook, Neverland, the hat, this kiss. Mortification crashes through her. No one else is in the room and she can see the faint streams of light dancing into the room from the rising sun. She clutches her head and bile starts to rise in her throat. No, he did not just betray her after everything they had just been through. This wasn't just a ploy to get the ink. But she knows the truth. Deep down, a part of her almost expected it, especially after everything that happened with… Emma glances down and see a piece of parchment lying beside her. It reads 'I'll be back'. Okay, she thinks, maybe she should give him the benefit of the doubt... if only after everything that happened with the natives. That was it. There was just some part of the story she was missing. He had seemed so off before he had knocked her out, there must have been something that was wrong. So she decides to wait.

6 hours later - Betrayal stings at Emma's eyes but she closes everything away, just like last time. She should have known better. Without any hesitation, Emma headed home.

One week later - Snow and Charming still question her relentlessly about what happened. She had been gone for a little over a week and they had almost gone to Rumplestiltskin for a portal. They want to know why she specifically said not to go to Rumplestiltskin. They want to know why Hook took her and how she was able to come back alive. They want to know how she got back. They want to know why she seems sad. They want to know so many things, but Emma tells them nothing. It doesn't matter anymore.

3 months later - Emma receives a letter and she recognizes the handwriting from the last note she had received. She knows exactly who it's from. She is almost curious enough to open it, but she lets her stubbornness get the best of her. She doesn't care. She throws it in the fireplace without reading it.

6 months later – Emma has convinced herself she can barely remember what Pixie Hollow looks like.

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**keep reading!**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

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Emma was screaming in agony. She could feel the aching, gaping hole where the arrow had lodged itself in her side sizzling and could tell she was already losing a lot of blood, but it had been more than just an arrow. She wouldn't be in this much agony if it were. The poison sliced and burned through her veins as it started to spread further into her body. Emma had never known pain like this. Her breathing is shaky and sharp and her eyes are reflexively scrunched closed in an attempt to stay strong and not fall apart in front of the guards. The carriage suddenly halted and Emma opened her eyes long enough her home and her father rushing toward the now open carriage doors.

"What happened?" Her father's voice is demanding and aghast.

"The arrow came out of nowhere," one of the guards answered as Emma felt herself being moved out of the carriage, "We were just fighting off some ogres from one of the boarder villages."

"Where is it?" her father questioned, his voice commanding and sharp. There was a rustling of movement. "It's poisoned," he concluded solemnly, "You," Charming barked, directing men as Emma realized it was him who was starting to carry her, "get the rest of the guard here and then you three head out with Snow."

As she was being carried into the castle, Emma glanced around and saw the courtyard filled with chaos. There were horses and guards on high alert everywhere. She begins to see this event wouldn't go unnoticed by the kingdom. Emma had already experienced numerous assassination attempts, but none of them had ever been this successful. This one might actually take her life. Agonizing spasms begin to rip through her body and Emma couldn't stop herself from screaming again before she lost all strength and passed out.

When she wakes up again, she is lying in her bed. Through a haze, Emma sees her father and Doc looming above her. "Where's mom?" she groaned, her voice faltering.

"She's gone to Lake Nostos to see if there's even just a tiny drop of water left anywhere," Charming assured as he moved to stand over her, his hand pushing away her hair that was sweaty and sticking to her forehead, "She'll be back soon." Emma already knew that there wasn't anything left. She had heard the story from her mother before. Going there was useless. There was no point…

"She's getting more worse by the hour," Doc's voice urged. She tried to flutter her eyelids open. She must have passed out again. How long had she been lying here?

Emma could feel a hand squeezing hers. "Mom?" she asked weakly.

"I couldn't find anything," her mother admitted through quiet sobs, "I'm sorry, Emma."

"What are our other options?" Charming anxiously implored.

Grump's voice was louder than the others. He was here too? "I hate to say it, but I think our only option now is-"

"Rumplestiltskin," her father interjected and Emma could tell by the tone of his voice that he was close to relenting.

"No," Emma croaked. Not Rumplestiltskin. Her thoughts immediately started flying to Killian and her heart dropped painfully. That was the last thing she needed to be thinking about. Because he was Hook, not Killian, and he had proved that. But now she couldn't stop thinking of him and Neverland and the way he had kissed her and how his eyes were the most mesmerizing shade of blue. How if she truly were about to die, she would want him here.

"Emma?" Snow exclaimed worriedly, startled by her sudden outburst.

"No." Emma moaned. No. She didn't want have anything to do with Rumplestiltskin after everything he had done to Killian and countless other people, "Anyone but him," she cried and begged but she soon felt herself being pulled into the darkness once more.

Sensing movement going on, Emma pried her eyes open. Turning cold, her heart faltered when she recognized the face above her. Rumplestiltskin. He was slowly waving a hand over her abdomen. "It'll all be over in a second, Dearie," Rumplestiltskin said, his voice smug and teasing.

Emma wanted to scream, kick, fight, and tear herself away from her but she couldn't move. She was completely frozen. Seeing the horrified look wash over her face, Snow pleaded with her, "I'm sorry, we had too."

Rumplestiltskin stilled and Emma's body immediately relaxed. There was no more pain. Only exhaustion. The room started to spin but Emma forced herself to stay awake. "Okay, you've healed her," Charming railed, "Now what do you want?"

Please, just nothing to do with her magic. With a maniacal giggle, Rumplestiltskin proclaimed, "Oh, I want nothing from you."

She could feel herself losing consciousness. No, she had to stay awake just a little longer. "Then what do you want from her?" Charming reiterated through a tightened jaw.

"A favor," Rumplestiltskin divulged, his voice echoing as a black oblivion consumed her.

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The next afternoon, Emma couldn't take it anymore. She had to get out of her room. Clutching her side, Emma heaved herself off her bed. The more she sat in here doing nothing, the more her thoughts started to wander to things she didn't want to think about.

She had been so good at staying busy and being preoccupied with other things, but everything that had happened the past two days made her more aware than ever of the huge, twisting knot that had been forming in her stomach for the past six months.

Emma couldn't be mad at her parents for calling upon Rumplestiltskin to heal her; they had just done whatever it took to keep her alive. And Emma wasn't sure she wouldn't have done the same if it had been her mom or dad who it had been poisoned. Knowing that she owed him a favor, though, caused her to be on edge. She didn't want to owe that man anything and she was fearful for the day that he would finally come to collect.

Shrugging on a red cloak, Emma decided to head down to the stables to get some fresh air and try to attempt some magic. When she had arrived back from Neverland, she had gone to the Blue Fairy to see if she had any ideas or answers, due to her parents' urging and much to her reluctance. While Blue contributed her powers to her being the product of true love, Emma still thought there had to be more than that. Kids were born out of true love every day, right? But what did she know. Maybe she would never really know. The Blue Fairy had been helping her learn how to properly wield her magic, also. It was hard, however, and Emma began to see that her emotions played a part in summoning it.

"Emma, what are you doing out of bed?" Her mother demanded as she walked into Emma's room.

Great. Her chances of getting out of her room started to quickly dwindle before her eyes. Trying to keep any annoyance out of her voice, Emma reluctantly confessed, "I'm going out to the stables to get some fresh air and practice a little."

Snow looked at her preposterously. "No, you're not," she chided as calmly as she could.

"I'm fine," Emma calmly assured her, debating, "it wasn't the arrow that was really hurting me, it was the poison and now that the poison is gone…"

"You still need to rest," Snow instructed.

"Please don't argue with me on this," Emma pleaded, "I can't stay in here any longer."

"Just be careful," Snow said, conceding as she put her hand up to Emma's cheek. She knew her mother wasn't blind to the increase in her activities ever since Neverland and Emma was thankful she wasn't trying to push it.

With a small smile, Emma pondered, "Does anyone know about the arrow yet?"

"No," her mother admitted, her voice laced with defeat and frustration.

"We were there fighting ogres," Emma jabbered. The whole situation was outrageous to her. Ogres didn't shoot arrows. "It wasn't them."

"Some of the villagers recognized a drawing of George," Snow offered, "Said they had seen him around recently."

That stubborn old man just wouldn't give up. Not bothering to hide her anger, Emma questioned, "Does dad think it was him?"

"He has his theories."

"The way the ogres were attacking," Emma said, glancing at her mother seriously. Her mind flew to the real reason they had been there. It was about more than just ogres. There had been several mysterious incidents around the their kingdom. They would find groups of people lying on the ground dead, whatever buildings were nearby would burned to the ground, but the victims' bodies all seemed untouched. Emma couldn't figure out how they were all dying. The attacks were random and after the third, Emma had been working with her parents and the guards in investigating and tracking whoever was behind it. They had been so sure that the next attack would happen on one of the villages bordering Thomas and Ella's kingdom, but just a couple of ogres showed up. And that's when she got hit with that arrow. "It's not them who has been behind the others."

"It was a distraction," Snow suddenly blurted, glancing at Emma guiltily.

Confusion coloring her face, Emma asked, "What are you talking about?"

Her words coming out soft and slow, Snow said, "There was an attack going on at the same time you got shot."

"They know we've noticed," Emma whispered to herself in understanding. She tried to push back her frustration, "How many people this time?"

"Ten." Snow lamented. Emma's heart dropped. That was the most there had ever been in one attack.

Emma scoffed incredulously. "This is ridiculous," she ranted. All the work she had done for months seemingly wasted, "we've been trying to track this person or group of people for months. Everything led to-"

"They misled us," her mother quickly started to explain, her rationale cutting Emma off, "I don't know how, but they did. None of the other kingdoms have any clues either."

"The other kingdoms?" Emma repeated, her voice dangerously low.

"There have been some similar incidents in some of the others," her mother confided, "Thomas and Ella's; Phillip and Aurora's."

"Why am I just now finding this out?" Emma hotly inquired.

"We're just finding out ourselves," her mother debated, "They've been keeping quiet too because they just don't make any sense."

After a long moment, Emma murmured, "Whoever is behind it all isn't from here." That much Emma knew. Every time she had been to the sites, she could sense something foreign had been there. There was just this faint trace of darkness and it chilled Emma to the bone.

"I agree with you," Snow replied, smiling warmly, "but not everyone else is as easily convinced."

"Thank you for believing me," Emma said, her voice quiet.

Snow pulled her into a hug. "Of course."

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In the stables, Emma was idly floating random pieces of hay in the air when someone else joined her.

"You're supposed to be dead."

She turned and saw familiar black hair and grey eyes. Dropping the hay, Emma walked over to Pinocchio. "I'm sorry to disappoint you," Emma teased, a genuine smile on her face, as she hugged him. He had been around the castle a lot as a kid and they had grown up together. He was probably the closet thing she had to a sibling.

"Are you sure you should be practicing your," he wagged his fingers in the air, indicating her magic, his voice slightly taunting, "you know, when you just got shot with an arrow?"

"It doesn't hurt. It feels like it's helping actually." Emma begrudgingly admitted. Anything that would keep her from thinking. She paused. Wait, how did he know she had been shot? She curiously ventured, "Why am I supposed to be dead?"

"You got shot in front of an entire village and then Snow and Charming had men everywhere trying to find something to help you for days," Pinocchio said, amusement on his face, "Rumors get around faster than the truth."

"Is that why you came back?" Emma observed. She hadn't seen him in about three months.

"Partly. It wasn't until I was about halfway back from Corona when I heard you were fine," he divulged, "But I still decided to come see how you were doing anyway."

"Thanks," Emma sighed, and then pointedly said, "and I'm fine."

"Any ideas on who did it?" Pinocchio asked engagingly.

"My dad thinks it was George."

"Do you think it was him?" Pinocchio asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

"I'm starting to," Emma muttered. Only he would try to kill her when she was busy defending innocent people. "How long are you staying?"

"It's still up in the air," he mused before turning more serious, "I've heard about those other attacks."

"They're still a mystery," Emma quipped bitterly. And now they were happening in other parts of the Enchanted Forest instead of just her kingdom.

Pinocchio shrugged nonchalantly. "I was thinking about staying and helping out."

"Don't feel like you have to."

"I want to," he protested, lowering his voice solemnly, "You guys are the only family I have left."

"Then stay." Emma smiled and squeezed his arm affectionately, "Do you want to see some more magic?"

"From the daughter of true love," Pinocchio mockingly raved, "it would be an honor."

"Shut up or you're going to get turned back into wood," Emma playfully threatened, "I've gotten close with the Blue Fairy lately."

"Does that mean hell has finally frozen over?" Pinocchio countered dryly.

Emma threw him an impish look. "Looks like it."

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_Emma started walking around the castle. She had to find something. Everything would be okay if she found it. After taking a few more steps, she paused. Wait, where was she going again? She couldn't remember. Oh, well. She would just walk around until she found something to do. Something was off. Emma looked up and down the corridor she was standing in. It was abnormally quiet. Where was everyone? Walking into the throne room, she saw no one. She ran up stairs to her parents' room. No one was in there either. In a panic, she began frantically running to every door and searching every room she could find. What was she looking for again? That's why she had been walking around. She was supposed to find something. But how could she when everyone was missing?_

_Coming to the main entrance, Emma hastily pushed the doors open only to be hit with a scorching wave of heat. The entire Enchanted Forest was consumed by a fiery blaze right before her eyes. A desperate scream choked itself from her lungs and escaped her as she ran forward across the bridge. When she got across the lake, she turned around and saw her home now turning to ash. No. No. No. This could not be happening. Scare and confused tears prickled at her eyes. Trees were collapsing around her in red and orange streaks. The howl and roar of the fire was deafening. The smoke was suffocating and there was so much blackness. The blackness seared her skin more the heat the inferno was casting off and plagued her more than seeing her entire world burn._

"Emma."

_She knew that voice. Panic, pain, and relief shot through her. No, he couldn't be here. But at least she wasn't alone anymore. What was here doing here? Her head whipped in every direction, trying to spot him. He was nowhere to be seen. "Killian?" Emma yelled frantically. No, he was here. She heard him. Looking back toward the forest, Emma froze and let out a fearful sob. A tall, black hooded man stood yards away from her. His face was completely covered in darkness. He stood in the middle of the path, outlined by the roar and flames of the fire like it was merely the air around him._

_"What do you want?" Emma unevenly screamed at the unknown figure. Her entire body trembled and she didn't know how much longer she could keep from being consumed by wildfire around her. The menacing figure said nothing and remained unmoving._

"Emma, it's okay."

_Emma whipped around again. That was Killian's voice again. She still couldn't see him. Killian. Her heart dropped painfully. She really just must be imagining him. Why did she have to be thinking of him in this moment? The moment she was sure she would die any second in. Emma tried to control the paralyzing terror pounding in waves through her body._

_"Leave us alone!" she begged the man, her voice breaking, as he continued to stare at her, his unseen eyes piercing and searing her soul. The figure raised his hand and suddenly started hurtling cycling rays of a consuming blackness at her. Jumping to the side, Emma managed to dodge it. Even though it passed her, the blackness somehow seem to increase around her, sending powerful waves of pressure through the atmosphere, waves that were starting to crush down painfully on her. Emma fell to the ground as tears were streaming down her face. And her magic, it felt like her magic was being drained from her. There was no way her light could survive the darkness this man carried. In a completely broken voice, Emma asked, "Why are you doing this?"_

"Emma."

_Painfully gasping in shock, Emma turned and saw Killian kneeling on the ground beside her, confusion etched on his face. He really was here. "Killian," Emma breathes, saying his name seems to still her heart if only for a moment, "you have to get out of here," she told him hysterically, trying not to show how happy she really was that at least he was here with her, "I can try to fight him."_

_Yes, now that he was here and real, she might have enough strength to summon enough magic to knock the hooded figure out. Emma wobbly tried to stand up. Killian helped her up, asking, "What are you talking about?" His eyes were amused and he seemed to be oblivious to the mayhem happening around him. What? The fire was overwhelming everything._

_"Run!" Emma yelled, desperate for him to run to safety, she wouldn't let him die with her. Emma pushed him away from her. Get away. Just get away from here. Glancing back at the hooded figure, she saw him lift his hand again and before Emma could protest, he aimed another wave of darkness and Killian was blasted away. Stunned and horrified, Emma fell to the ground in a painful heap. The world was collapsing around her. No. No. No. She should've stopped it. She should've been able to stop it. The figure started to stride toward her. Despair twisted her insides. This was it. She was going to die._

"Emma!"

The loud voice broke through her consciousness and abruptly awoke her from her nightmare. Her body was trembling under the weight of distraught fear that was crippling her chest. Tears covered her cheeks as her eyes popped open. She gasped for air and tried to halt the sobs erupting from her chest. As her vision focused, she was met with a face that shouldn't be as familiar as it was, with eyes she shouldn't already be dying to see.

"It's okay, sweetheart," Killian said, his eyes shining with concern as his hand brushed up and down her face, "It was just a nightmare."

It was just a nightmare. It had been so real. Relief staggered through her. Nightmare. But Killian, no Hook, Hook was here for real. Every emotion that had been building up in Emma for the past six months flooded her in a rampage. This was reality. And if she had anything to do about it, his reality was about to become a lot more violent.

Emma lifter her hands and used her magic to shoot him across the room, snarling, "What the hell are you doing here?"

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A/N: Sooo... what did everyone think? Killian is going to have a very strong argument for doing what he did, but Emma's countering argument is just as strong. The next chapter is going to be very heated.

And just to clarify, only this last section is Emma's nightmare; she is asleep in her room and Killian wakes her up.

Please review if you can! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions :)

or follow me on tumblr at suddenlyamy!

Thanks for again reading! Love you all!


	9. Chapter Eight

Hey everyone! :) I hope you all had a wonderful New Years! Plus we are days away from the new episode and I couldn't be more excited! I need Captain Hook back on my screen. And I will shamefully admit the Timeless Love promo had me in tears the first time I saw it. Thanks to all who reviewed last chapter and didn't completely hate me for Killian leaving Emma like that! lol but all will be explained this chapter. Also, a lot of you were confused about the whole dream/nightmare thing last chapter, so I went back and edited the chapter a bit to hopefully make it clearer. The only part that was a dream was Emma finding the Enchanted Forest burning. I'm sorry for any confusion! Enjoy :)

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**Chapter Eight**

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Emma angrily jumped out of her bed, still breathing heavy and shaking from her nightmare. She tried to ignore the images of the Enchanted Forest burning clouding her vision and focus on reality. Hook was here. After six months of planning and rehearsing speeches in her head of what she would say to him if she ever saw him again, he was back. She would finally get to give him a piece of her mind and get some answers. Emma marched over to where he was lying on the floor. Her heart was pounding heavily and words escaped her as she looked down at him. Hurt prickled up in her throat. This wasn't going to be as easy as she thought it would be. Wincing, Hook's hand moved to his chest as he tried to sit up. He gave her a conceding look that said 'if you must' and groaned, "I see you've been practicing."

"Thanks for noticing," Emma said, her voice hoarse from the lump forming in her throat. Her mind and body were going haywire from her traumatizing nightmare and from the conflicting emotions of seeing Hook again. She was finding it hard to concentrate when all she really wanted to do was break down and cry. Thank God she was decent at least, too, she thought as she looked down at her riding clothes. She had exhaustively passed out in them after returning from the stables. Emma did her best to sound stern, "Now tell me what the hell you're doing here."

"People were saying you might be dead," Hook replied, his blue eyes flashing dangerously at her as he stood up and brushed himself off, "Excuse me for wanting to disconfirm that rumor in person."

"Don't pretend to care," she spat, pretending not to notice the fluttering in her stomach. His dark brown was a little longer, but he was still wearing his customary black and silver earring. She noticed he did seem tired and that there were bags forming under his eyes. So maybe he really had been worried. Emma pushed the thought from her mind. He didn't care. And she had tried to convince herself for six months that she didn't. But now all she could see when she looked at him was him being blasted away by cloud of black and the feeling of her heart breaking.

Hook pointed a finger at her now covered mirror and angrily growled, "I thought I told you to keep that covered up."

His words made Emma want to laugh. Why was he always so concerned about mirrors? But she was too overwhelmed to do anything but concentrate on her breathing. She had to stay calm and not let him get to her. Emma could feel Hook eyeing her. Her stomach dropped. Who was she kidding? He wasn't Hook, he was Killian. He would always be Killian to her. And that's what made everything about this more painful. She was the one who had been fooled when she had tried to do everything in her power to stay one step ahead.

"What were you dreaming about?" Killian asked, concerned, and started to move toward her.

She had to get it together. She didn't want his pity. "Nothing." Emma muttered, brushing away a tear that was threatening to escape from her eye.

"You were talking," he argued, his voice soft and calm as he took another step forward, "You told me to run from him. Who was him?"

"It doesn't matter," Emma snapped. The hooded figure with consuming darkness flashed through her mind and her chest reflexively clinched. The darkness had been inescapable.

Now in front of her, Killian reached out and touched her arm. "Emma, you can tell-"

"Don't touch me," Emma hissed and forcibly slapped his hand away. No, she had to stand her ground and him touching her would definitely hinder her chances. Killian didn't say anything but she could hurt flicker through his eyes. Good. She wanted him to hurt like she did.

After a long moment, he pointed down to her side, somberly asking, "What happened?"

Emma hadn't noticed that she had been clutching her side where her wound was. Her quick and sudden movements had set off a minute, radiating pain. She sighed and reflexively dropped her hand, not wanting to show any weakness. "I got shot with an arrow," Emma grumbled, carefully leaving her explanation at that. She was afraid of what his reaction might be if he knew Rumplestiltskin had healed her, leaving her in his debt. Emma was not willing to reveal that piece of information to him just yet, if ever. Remembering his words about wanting to see she was really alive, she glared at him, incredulously asking, "Have you been in the Enchanted Forest this entire time?"

"Why? Did you miss me?" Killian teasingly whispered, smirking and raising an eyebrow. Emma ground her teeth together. She didn't want to play any games with him right now. When she didn't respond, he tiredly sighed, "I just got back four days ago."

Unable to contain her curiosity, Emma reluctantly asked, "From where?"

Killian froze and cautiously studied her but within a moment he was laughing with a bitter grin on his face. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Why are you laughing?" Emma grumbled, annoyed. She didn't see what was so funny.

"You never even read that letter I sent you, did you?" Killian implored angrily, his eyes narrowing accusingly.

"Why would I read a letter from the man left me passed out in a rotting house after he'd finally gotten what he wanted?" Emma countered, her voice seemingly calm but dripping with acid and contempt nonetheless. Her stubbornness was starting to surface; she wouldn't let him win this one.

"The ink's right here, darling," Killian replied lowly, his eyes darkening intensely. He pulled out the bottle of ink from his pocket and held it out to her, "If I let you hold it, will you be more agreeable?"

Emma stiffened. This wasn't about the ink. She couldn't even look at it without feeling like it was mocking her. "No," she said firmly, her nostrils flaring.

Killian's eyes danced stormily as he put the ink away, never once taking them off her. Resoluteness washed over his features, "It's not like I wanted to do that to you."

"Really?" Emma sneered. If that was true, then why did he do it? She still couldn't think of reason why he would after replaying every scenario she could think of in her head for the past six months.

"Maybe if you had read my letter you would know that," Killian quipped, an exasperated and mocking tone in his voice.

Her green eyes widening unbelievably, Emma barked, "Don't blame this on me." There was no way he was going to turn this back on her.

"I was just stating a fact," Killian debated hotly, doing his best to look innocent. His snarky attitude interfered and over rid any other attempted emotion though.

Raising her voice, Emma crossly repeated, "Where were you?"

"First, I went to Agrabah looking for portals," Killian explained patronizingly, waving his hands at each new point, "There were none, so I came back here."

Emma didn't even know why she bothered to ask. Of course he was off still searching for some way to a land without magic. The irony of it all, though, was the person he had betrayed was the one person who had a way. Emma wanted to feel smug and vindicated by that fact, but she couldn't. She just felt humiliated. Because before he had left, she had wanted to give the wardrobe to him. She had started to believe she could trust him enough with it and now look where she was. She was extremely lucky that she had never mentioned it to him. "And second?" Emma asked, her eyebrow raised challengingly.

Killian paused and seemed to have to gather his bearings before continuing, his voice wary, "When I arrived back in the Enchanted Forest, I met a man who told me he could help me find the weapon that could kill Rumplestiltskin if I helped him out first."

"And of course you agreed," Emma chided disdainfully. She shouldn't be surprised that he would trust some stranger just because he made promises about Rumplestiltskin. His revenge would be the death of him and she couldn't do anything but watch.

"Yes." Killian snapped, clearly exasperated. "And that's when I sent you that letter explaining everything that you so kindly decided to burn," he pointed out caustically, "Since then, I've been in Oz looking for this ridiculous sounding magical belt this man wants," Killian clamored, frustration filling his eyes as he threw his hand and hook up in defeat, "but I couldn't find it, so I returned."

Emma definitely agreed with him on that one. A magical belt? And Oz? The whole thing sounded crazy. "Who is this guy?" she pondered, her voice skeptical and outrageous.

To her surprise, Killian's features immediately darkened. "You wouldn't want to meet him," he replied cryptically, his voice low and final.

Irritation bubbled up in her stomach. She hated it when he did this. Acted like she couldn't handle his plans. This was just like Neverland; there, he hadn't told her about natives, or Vidia, or the mermaids still having power in the day. What if she knew this man or accidently came across him one day? Besides, she was the one who had saved their asses in Neverland from Vidia and the mermaids. And if this guy was so bad, how exactly did he come across him? "How did _you_ meet him?"

"He _approached_ me." Killian objected irately in response to her accusing tone.

Emma scoffed, "A random man approaches you and somehow knows you're after Rumplestiltskin and somehow _also_ knows how to kill him and you don't stop, even for a second, to question it? How do you even know you can trust him?" she ranted hysterically. Was he really that blinded for revenge and so unconcerned for his own life that he wouldn't even be suspicious? What if this man was just using him and didn't really know anything about a weapon?

Killian's eyes glazed over as he remembered something, his hand going to his chin. "He was very convincing," he admitted with a relenting sigh.

"How?" Emma asked anxiously as she studied him over quizzically.

Instead of answering her question, his lips upturned slightly as his eyes searched her face calculatingly. "It's nice to see you so concerned," Killian murmured, his hand moving to her hair.

Emma reflexively froze and started to put her walls back up. She could hit herself. She let his story get under her skin, making her forget she was supposed to be angry with him. Instead, she _was_ acting like she was concerned. Because she was. She hated herself for it. And of course he had to call her out on it and embarrass her even more. "Forget it." Emma icily spat, blank-faced, and attempted to turn away from him.

"Emma, c'mon," Killian pleaded as he turned her back around, turning serious now, "Just listen to me-"

"I am listening," Emma snapped pretentiously. His desperate blue eyes were causing her chest to constrict so she roughly pulled away from him, turning accusatory, "You're the one who keeps getting distracted."

"I didn't want to hit you," Killian quickly confessed, staring at her honestly and intently, "Or leave you there. I didn't have a choice."

"Then why did you?" Emma blurted out, hurt and betrayal beginning to swell in her chest. This would be the hard part. This was the one question she had been asking herself for six months and she had to stay strong until he finally left, "I could've gone to Agrabah with you."

Killian looked her over with guilt and regret washing over his features. He took a deep breath, his voice grave, "You exposed the mirror."

This was all about that stupid mirror? Emma glanced over at her covered mirror and choked out a bitter and hysterical laugh. "Why are mirrors so scary to you?"

"Because Regina uses them to watch people," Killian spat out fiercely. All of Emma's air left her lungs in a biting rush. What? She quickly glanced over at her mirror fearfully. Regina could see into her room? Hear every conversation she had ever had in here? Her mind started to fly to all the other mirrors in her home. No. This was impossible. Did her parents know? Is that why they had always been careful with their words? Surely they would have told her. They must just have some idea, not know it was the mirrors exactly. Things started to click. No wonder Regina always seemed to know things she shouldn't. Emma now never wanted to look in a mirror again. "Mirrors aren't so appealing anymore, are they?" Killian grimly said, predicting her thoughts.

"How do you know that?" Emma questioned, still stunned and reeling from his news.

"I've been around a long time," Killian acrimoniously pointed out with a small shrug, "I've learned a lot of things, and one of them is to always know everything about your enemies."

"So because I uncovered the mirror," Emma brazenly concluded, skepticism and dismay radiating from her, "it means I let Regina see what we were doing?"

"You honestly don't think she watches the two of us like hawk?" Killian scathingly replied.

The _two_ of us? Since when was Regina _his_ enemy? Emma suspiciously narrowed her eyes. "Why would she care about watching you?" she asked doubtfully.

Killian took a step toward her, his eyes serious and sincere. "The only person Regina might want dead more than you, is me."

"Why?" Emma asked him hesitantly. The way he had suddenly turned solemn and resolute was starting to make her nervous for his answer.

He visibly swallowed. "I'm the reason she can't cast that curse," Killian confessed, his voice heavy and bleak.

Emma blinked. "What?" she whispered, alarmed and shocked, her eyes going wide as she started to remember her conversation with Red so long ago. Red had said her parents thought he might have had something to do with the curse. It was true. It was all true. He was the reason they were all still in the Enchanted Forest. The reason she was still with her family. The reason she no longer had to be the savior.

"Twenty years ago, Regina caught me in her castle," Killian quickly started to explain, "She knew I wanted to find a way to kill Rumplestiltskin, so she told me about her curse and how it would finally be possible to enact my revenge in a land without magic."

So that's how he had figured out Rumplestiltskin would no longer be the Dark One in this other world. But wasn't that what he wanted? "So why didn't you go along with it?" Emma asked, confused and still stunned from his bombshell. Everything connected back to him. Was this some sort of sick joke the universe was playing on her?

"Because before she cast it, she wanted me to kill her mother," Killian said, rolling his eyes in frustration and offense at the Evil Queen.

"But Cora's dead," Emma stubbornly argued. Her mother had said she had died soon after Regina had become Queen, "She's –"

"In Wonderland," Killian cut her off, a knowing smile on his face, "She sent me there through the hat and enchanted my hook with a spell that would allow me to rip Cora's heart out."

The memory of Regina trying to rip out her heart flashed through Emma's mind. "Did you?" Emma asked nervously, her voice low and quiet.

"Cora's heart wasn't there," Killian replied begrudgingly, his hand motioning to his chest, "When Cora learned it was Regina who had sent me, she wanted me to take her back so she could kill Regina. I agreed when she told me Regina's curse would erase my memories."

"You wouldn't even remember Rumplestiltskin," Emma muttered, lost in thought. He had stopped the curse because he was just that crazily determined to get revenge on Rumplestiltskin. She tried to imagine if he hadn't succeeded in stopping it. As the savior, she would have eventually broken the curse and he probably would have ended up harassing her and making deals with her in this other life too.

"Exactly." Killian grinned, but it did not reach his eyes, "But Cora changed her mind about killing Regina. The curse was on its way to happening so I took matters into my hands." He concededly sighed. Emma could still detect a hint of smugness in his voice, though, "With the help of someone else who was desperate to leave Wonderland, we left Cora there and I figured out what was the key to stopping the curse," Killian's slowed his story, his jaw twitched and an unpleasantness entered his voice, "The one thing Regina had been struggling the most with and still had failed to do," he turned quiet and there was almost an ironic air about him, "Take the heart of the thing she loved most."

Emma's heart started to pound in anticipation. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the rest. "What did you do?" she asked quietly with caution in her voice.

Killian looked away from her for a moment before turning back to her determinately, confessing, "I took her father's heart."

"You took someone's heart?" Emma horrifically whispered. She remembered how painful it had been when Regina's hand had entered her chest and she couldn't believe he would willingly do that to someone.

"I had to." Killian madly protested, holding out a finger at her.

No, no, no. She couldn't believe this. _That's_ what stopped Regina's curse? That's what Regina would have done to enact her curse? Emma couldn't imagine doing anything like that. "What did you do with it?" Emma suddenly asked, hysterical. "Did you kill him?"

"No. I still have it," Killian retorted indignantly. "_He_ won't get it back until I'm finished with Rumplestiltskin."

Emma took a deep breath, trying to process this. Everything about this was so impossible and crazy. He literally had the power to change all of their lives in his hand. He had the one thing was stopping the curse from happening. Emma shook her head disbelievingly. "Why are you telling me this?" This was huge. And this was the reason he had left after Neverland? Because she had potentially exposed his whereabouts to Regina? And then she remembered their deal. This was the leverage she had bargained for.

"I just spent a couple of hours thinking you might be dead yesterday. I'm not leaving anything else to chance," Killian said, his blue eyes violently fierce and overwrought as he roughly grabbed her by the arm, "You can trust me. I just told you something not another soul knows but me," he determinately argued, "I'll show you where the heart is, I'll tell you everything."

She stared at him incredulously, his offer overwhelming her. It was something that would have sent her into a puddle of happiness six months ago but now the pain and sting of betrayal and her paralyzing fear of being played again overpowered the throbbing in her chest. "How is that supposed to make me trust you?" Emma countered, her voice shaking, "You left me lying unconscious in the middle of nowhere just because you thought I might have let Regina see what you were doing."

"You think this is just about me?" Killian furiously queried, sneering indignantly.

Emma's brows knitted in confusion, hotly replying, "You just said – "

He irately hissed, "You potentially exposed _us_ to Regina."

"Why does it matter so much if Regina saw _us_?" Emma contemptuously countered, mocking his tone of voice.

"Because Regina knowing we're together is like handing over the means to destroy us both on a silver platter," Killian roared, startling Emma. He closed his eyes, attempting to calm himself. "Think about it, Emma," he spat furiously, "we're the two people Regina wants to hurt the most. She wouldn't hesitate to try to find a way to use us against each other," Killian threw his arms up outrageously, "It would be like killing two birds with one stone."

He was right. That was definitely Regina's style. And it wouldn't be the first time Regina had tried to use somebody important to her against her. So what was trying to say? That they were important to each other? Conflict and uncertainty started to claw and rip through her chest. Emma couldn't deny that somewhere along the way, he had become important to her. But as for him, Emma would have to deny those thoughts. She didn't want to believe him and she didn't think she could literally bring herself to either. She was too scared. The thought of trusting someone with her heart again was so terrifying it made her sick to her core. So she did what she did best: deny. "No, its not." Emma hoarsely choked out after a painful swallow.

"Please, Emma," Killian caustically snorted. He took a significant step toward her, his voice lowering and eyes set on her, "You know I'm right."

"You might have been right six months ago," Emma admitted unevenly, trying to hold her ground and to keep from shaking, "but I am never making that mistake with you again."

"I was trying to protect you." Killian wildly railed, a menacing and frantic glare on his face.

"You were trying to save your own skin too," Emma hotly spat back, "You could've waited for me to wake back up to tell me what was going on."

"And then what?" Killian contended, raising his eyebrows expectantly, his arms held out openly, "You wouldn't have listened to anything I said. You would've gone and done something to provoke her."

"You don't know that!" Emma indignantly objected, even though there was truth in his words. After that kiss, she probably would've done anything to keep Regina away from him.

"I told you I would be back," Killian debated, his eyes flashing with urgency, "I just was going to be gone long enough for Regina to believe you were only a pawn."

"Isn't that what I am though?" Emma croaked spitefully, her breathing shaky, "Just a means to an end?"

A hint of devastation clouded the blue of his eyes. He somberly moved toward her and reached his hand up to her face, slowly caressing her cheek. "You don't really think that," Killian breathed after a moment, confidence resonating his voice.

Emma began to instinctively close her eyes at his touch but caught herself before she could do anything stupid. She couldn't find it in her to move his hand away, though. "Yes, I do," she whispered, doing her best to not look him directly in the eyes.

"Then why are you so mad at me?" Killian implored, a small smile forming on his face as he moved even closer to her. She knew he was going to try to kiss her, knowing full well that she was lying. And Emma knew once he kissed her, she wouldn't be able stop. Her body was already starting to react to his. Fire and electricity were already humming through her veins, willing her toward him. She mustered what was left of her crumbling strength.

"You were one of the few people in my life to ever treat me like an equal and who didn't treat me like a princess or the savior," she shakily answered honestly, trying to keep the tears at bay, "And that's what meant something to me."

"Nothing's changed." Killian fervently digressed, his blue eyes bearing intensely into hers.

"Everything's changed!" Emma furiously cried. It was just like with the natives. He deliberately left her out his plans and suspicions and had expected her to just be okay with it. Just like now. There was no guarantee that he wouldn't do it again, either. She was tired of people trying to control what she did. She was tired of feeling alone all the time because people would leave her to do things 'for her', "You knocking me out and leaving for six months proves that."

Fuming, Killian articulated, "No, it doesn't."

"Then why deliberately leave me out of it?"

"Rumplestiltskin ripped Milah's heart out and crushed it right in front of me." Killian snarled, his voice bellowing savagely, "It's my fault. He wanted me. It was suppose to me," he vehemently ranted, his bright blue eyes turning mad and hysterical, "I'm not about to let history repeat itself. I'm not going to be the reason Regina starts to come after you even more."

Stunned, Emma stared up at him with wide, horrified eyes, her breathing heavy and her heart pounding wildly. She couldn't imagine having the heart of the person she loved crushed right in front of her and she felt herself become devastated for him, the real reason for his revenge coming to light. And she knew what he was trying to say, how she was supposed to take this. This was him caring for her; this was him putting her near the same level of Milah. But that was just it. _Near_. It felt like her insides were grinding together and slowly mauling apart. It was just like before. She would never be put first, never be number one in anyone's heart. And if she hadn't been so devastated she would have found humor in the foiling symmetry of their experiences. Her vision blurred and she couldn't stop her tears from cascading down her cheeks. "You don't have to worry about that anymore," she whispered, her voice thick and cracked as she tried to back away from him.

Killian blinked, looking taken aback. His eyes flashed dangerously as he grabbed her and pulled her back toward him, hissing ghastly, "What's that suppose to mean?"

Emma wrangled her arm out of his grasp, demurely replying, "It means you should just go."

"After what I just told you?" Killian fretted, his voice outrageous and disbelieving.

Flinching, Emma resentfully spat, "Especially after what you just told me."

Killian brazenly grabbed her chin and forced her to look up at him. "Listen to me. I'm only going to say this once." His blue eyes shone with desperation and tenderness, "I'm not _him_, Emma."

Her body turned ice cold. She couldn't have this conversation with him. Not now. She sharply pushed against his chest with all her strength. "You have no idea what you're talking about."

Unaffected by her outburst, Killian swayed slightly before glaring down at her, his eyes dark and determined. "I know whatever he did is preventing you from being able to trust me," he hotly argued.

"Really?" Emma incredulously scoffed, reeling from the arrogance of it all, "that's the only reason?"

"Whatever he did-" Killian began, his voice rising.

"Stop," Emma irately barked, sending him a menacing glare, "You don't know anything."

Killian roared, "Then tell me!"

"He's the reason Regina was ever able to get close enough to me to be able to rip my heart out in the first place!" Emma viciously wailed, tears streaming down her face, "Is that what you wanted to hear?" she cried, her voice breaking, "Did that match up to any of the ideas in your head?" Emma wearily sputtered, a sob escaping her lips.

He stared gapingly at her for a moment, speechlessness written on his face. Finally, Killian rigidly uttered, "No."

The pain from remembering the experience was breaking her and the humiliation of having to admit this him crushed her spirits. She wanted to lash out at him for forcing her here. She wanted him to feel anything remotely close to what she was feeling right now. In this moment, she thought she might truly hate him. "How about the part where he had been playing me the entire time?" Emma recalled bitterly with a caustic, humorless grin as she used both hands to push him in the chest.

"I-"

Emma roughly pushed him again. "Or how about how he traded my life for a portal so he could go find the girl he really loved?" she acidly spat, her eyes wild.

"Emma-"

"Is that a good enough story for you?" Emma hysterically howled as she violently pushed him again. Here he was, seeking revenge for his love's heart being ripped out, while her love had willingly sent her to Regina for it to happen.

"Stop!" Killian thundered, severely wrangling her protesting and frantic arms to a stop and pulling her against him. He stared down at her, concerned and distressed, his breathing heavy. And that's when Emma began to see the irony of it all. Regina had used her first love to hurt her and she had been completely devastated by his betrayal. And now Killian had betrayed her because of Regina and what Regina might do. She would never be able to have the love she wanted because Regina couldn't have hers and she hadn't succeeded in keeping her father from her mother. Regina would always be there waiting in the wings to destroy her. She couldn't stop herself from crazily laughing. "Why are you laughing?" Killian reproachfully inquired.

"Because even when she isn't trying," Emma miserably explained, breathless and unbelieving, "Regina still manages to win."

"Don't you dare try to compare me to him," Killian suddenly roared with sparking hurt and indignation, "I would never to do that to you."

She raised an eyebrow at him, spitefully theorizing, "Oh, so if Regina came to you with a way to finally kill Rumplestiltskin or even better, bring back Milah," Emma added with a twisted, ironic smile, "in exchange for me, you wouldn't do it?"

"No." Killian defiantly relayed, his jaw locked.

If she hadn't been looking for it, she might have missed the miniscule flicker of hesitation flash across his eyes. But she did catch it, and Emma wanted to use anything she could against him right now. "You're a terrible liar," she stated coldly.

"I'm not lying," Killian fervently protested through a clenched jaw, "I've been dedicated to my revenge for years. It's the only thing I thought about for _centuries_. It's practically hardwired into my very soul at this point," he abominably yelled, his arms flying frenetically, "You can't blame for a second's hesitation. Old habits die hard," Killian ferociously preached, "It's my instinct to say yes."

She couldn't blame him, but he still never answered her question about Milah. And Emma wanted to do what her instincts were telling. Run. "I want you to leave," Emma mechanically ordered. She was close to falling apart and she wanted him as far away from her as possible when that happened.

Killian stood his ground. "I'm not leaving," he boldly warned.

"I don't want you here." Emma jaggedly repeated.

"I don't give a damn about what you 'want'," Killian scathingly interjected, his eyes blazing, "We made a deal and I'm going to see it through."

"The deal was off the moment you left me in that shack," Emma declared hostilely, "Now go."

"No," Killian firmly reiterated, "We need each other."

She didn't want to think about what he meant by that. Instead, she grabbed the first thing she saw. "The moment I bang this every guard inside the castle will swarm this room in seconds," she told him sternly as she strode over near her window and held up a baton to the metal gong in her room, "You wouldn't want to be thrown in a dungeon for attempted kidnapping before you can finish off Rumplestiltskin, would you?"

"You're bluffing," Killian keenly reprimanded after a moment of studying her, a smirk beginning to form on his lips. He started to move deliberately toward her.

Emma moved the baton closer to its destination, her voice desperate as she threatened, "It might even alert Regina that you're here too."

Killian took another step toward her, calm and confident. "You won't."

With that, Emma banged the baton against the metal gong, causing it to shudder noisily and shrilly. Killian froze, stunned, and then cast her a dark look. He spat an irate growl before quickly striding out of her room. Once he was gone, a sob tore through Emma's chest as she fell to floor.

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A/N: Sooo, there's certainly still a lot of drama between them. Is Killian's excuse good enough? Or is Emma rightfully upset? He did finally tell her what really happened to Milah, though, and everyone found out exactly what happened to Emma's past love. Any guesses on who he might be? ;)

Thank you so much for reading and please leave a review if you can! I would love to hear from you :)

You can follow me on tumblr at suddenlyamy too!

Love you all!

**Next Chapter Summary:** Frustrated by her failure to help fix some of the problems in the Enchanted Forest and overwhelmed by Killian's return, Emma finds herself heading down a dark and dangerous path; Charming has some news; Killian's a stalker; and someone dies.


	10. Chapter Nine

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for all the reviews/follow/favorites :) I'm so appreciative of all the kind words about the story and I love hearing what you all have to say. This is my longest chapter yet, but I really wanted everything that happens in this chapter to stay in the same chapter for the sake of pacing and other things, which I'll explain at the end! So enjoy :)

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**Chapter Nine**

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**Two Weeks Later**

Emma was going crazy. For two weeks, she could feel that stupid pirate's eyes on her, but not once did he ever show himself. What did he expect? For her to come to him? Yeah, right. That would happen when hell froze over. And how was following her around going to do him any good? Shouldn't he be following around that mysterious man he was now an errand boy for apparently? It's not like she was going to suddenly reveal some super secret way to kill Rumplestiltskin. The guards had been looking at her strangely now, wondering why she carried her sword throughout the castle grounds with her lately, seemingly paranoid. Her parents were starting to hover worriedly too, since she had been acting like a woman possessed when it came to mirrors now.

So in short, Killian being back was not helping her at all. She was already stressed enough with everything that was going on in her kingdom and burdened with the frustration that she hadn't made any true progress after six long months of trying. Emma was beginning to feel like it was her fault. She was the one with the magic and the one who was supposed to be the savior, but people were still continuing to be killed by some unknown villain and things were getting worse in the Enchanted Forest every day. And now, she was just so _angry_. Angry at Killian for suddenly showing up and thinking that everything was just peachy between them and angry at herself for almost being happy to see him. Because she shouldn't be and because she still felt a slight sting of betrayal when she looked at him. She had no idea what to do. She wished he would just leave her alone so she could stop feeling all jumbled inside and finally be able to think straight and not have to make a decision about what she may or may not be feeling for him. Things would be so much easier if he would stop being so stubborn about her. Emma was convinced he wouldn't even be seeking her out so much if she hadn't been shot with that blasted arrow. It was all George's fault. And with that conclusion and Killian's words of 'we need each other' echoing in her head, Emma began to focus all her scattered, overwrought energy on one task: she was going after George. She had to do _something_. She had to gain some kind of control over her life or she was going to fall apart. And she was going to prove that she could fix her own problems without the help of that stupid pirate.

With her puncture wound finally healed, mostly anyway, Emma was practicing shooting on one of the long, open walkways on top of the castle. While there wasn't a lot of range for her arrows, it was the one place she knew no one could watch without her noticing. They only way anyone could was if they came through one of the two doors at the sides.

Enjoying her alone time, Emma didn't know how long she had been up there when she heard the door behind her start to open. She grasped her bow tighter, preparing herself if it was Killian – she was going to be livid if it was – but instead saw her father come through the door. "Hey," he greeted with a small, confused smile on his face, noticing her defensive stance.

Emma breathed a sigh of relief before turning back around and briskly shooting another arrow at the circled target. "Hi," she muttered flatly.

"I would hate to be whomever you're picturing right now," Charming joked as he walked up next to her, "Should I run?"

Who was she picturing at the moment? She couldn't decide between George and Killian. Emma turned to give her dad a tired, pointed look. "No."

"I came out here to tell you the news," Charming said, his voice serious as he held up a letter, "Caroline's pregnant."

"Already?" Emma asked, taken aback. Caroline had married William, the oldest son of King Eric about three months. She hadn't been invited to the wedding. "Wow," she breathed, blinking in astonishment. She nodded her head at the parchment in his hands, "Who's it from?"

Charming crossed his arms and leaned up against the stone wall. "Abigail," he sighed.

Emma felt a flash of annoyance course through her. Of course it was from Abigail and not a direct announcement from Caroline. Great. Another problem caused by her that she had forgotten about. Ever since Caroline had married William and ascended to the throne of their newly combined kingdoms, she had been acting hostilely toward theirs, even if her parents were still allies with Frederick and Abigail. "Another trip I have to make," Emma grumbled under her breath. She knew Caroline harbored animosity for her, but Emma was not going to let her continue to risk the alliance of their kingdoms because of it. It was about time for them to finally confront each other. She had been putting it off for far too long. It would have to wait until after she was done with George, though.

"What are you talking about?" Charming concernedly asked, having heard her.

"I overheard you and mom talking a long time ago," Emma reluctantly confessed, not able to meet this eyes, "About how I'm the reason Caroline doesn't want to ally with us anymore."

"Emma, it's more complicated than that-"

"No it isn't," Emma interjected sharply. This was about her. She reached down and frustratingly grabbed some more arrows, "It's time to clear the air between us."

After a long moment, suspicion washed over Charming's face. "What do you mean _another_ trip?" he asked, his voice rising slightly.

Shit. She hadn't been thinking when she had said that. Emma shot another arrow, feigning indifference. "Nothing," she told him, her voice straining to stay even.

Realization entered his eyes as he studied her. Taking a step forward, he warned, "Don't go after George."

"I'm not." Emma said, incredulousness in her voice. She knew it was useless trying to lie, though, her dad knew her too well.

"He's not worth it." Charming sternly stressed.

"I said I'm not going after him," Emma snapped. She immediately felt bad, but if her parents knew, they would stop her and she had to do this. She had to _something_. That phrase had been flying through her head like a mantra lately.

Her father took a deep breath, his voice turning softer, "I know you've been going through a rough time ever since you got back from Neverland-"

"He was here the other night," she suddenly blurted, knowing he would know who she was talking about since they were on the topic of Neverland. Emma had no idea why she was confessing to Killian's visit now, but it had messed with her head and she wanted to talk about it. At the moment, her parents were the only people she had to talk to. Who was she kidding; they were the only people she really _could_ talk to anyway. And her unexpected rendezvous to Neverland had freaked them out so much she felt bad about not telling them. Especially since they still thought that Killian had kidnapped her. She had never corrected them on that assumption. Oops. Emma started to contemplate telling him that, he probably wouldn't be so keen to hang around the castle if he knew her dad would run a sword through him the second he was spotted. "About two weeks ago."

"Hook was here?" Charming reiterated, his voice low and dangerous, "Two _weeks_ ago? And you didn't alert any of the guards?" he furiously ranted, looking stunned, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"He just wanted to talk," Emma muttered, rolling her eyes and instantly regretting ever bringing this up now.

Charming stared at her outrageously. "About what exactly?"

"It doesn't matter. I got him to leave," Emma told him reassuringly, her voice confident. Killian had been right about her bluffing, but not exactly what she had been bluffing about. That gong was just some random item in her room and no guards would come if she hit it, absolutely nothing would happen. She couldn't even remember where it came from.

"It matters to me," her father countered, still flabbergasted, "How did he even get into the castle without anyone noticing?"

If her father only knew he was still _in_ the castle, hiding out somewhere. "He just wants his revenge," Emma whispered, failing to hide the bitterness that was creeping into her voice.

"You thought about giving him _it_, didn't you?" Charming mused, his voice startled and confounded, and Emma knew he was referring to the wardrobe, "Until –"

"It doesn't matter anymore what I thought," Emma quickly interjected, her demeanor hardening. She aimed an arrow and watched as it the bull's-eye, harshly and determinately saying, "He's not getting anything else from me."

She wasn't sure who she was trying to convince.

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Early the next afternoon, Emma snuck down the side of the castle wall when she was sure no one was watching. Her dad had been watching her like a hawk ever since yesterday. She tried not to think too hard about what she was doing, instead just forced herself to focus on the adrenaline that was beginning to pump through her veins. This had to be done. She needed to do this. How were things in her life or in the Enchanted Forest ever going to get better if things constantly remained stagnant? She wished she was going after Regina, or even after whoever was terrorizing the kingdoms, but that was too much for her to take on right now. She had to start small, with George, and then keep going from there.

Emma traveled to the area where he had last been spotted, close to east river running through mountains, and began to hop from tree to tree, keeping a lookout for any sign of George or his men and trying to stay out of sight. Since she was also carrying her bow in her hand, climbing was starting to get more difficult the more the hours passed. Deciding to stay on the ground for a while, she hopped down from the tree she was in only to be grabbed from behind seconds later, a hand covering her mouth.

Panicking, Emma hysterically squirmed and began to try to fight against whoever had grabbed her. "Relax. It's just me," a familiar, exasperated voice hissed in her ear.

"What the hell!" Emma snarled, wrenching herself away from Killian when he loosened his hold, "You can't just sneak up on people like that!" she told him irately, wild accusation in her green eyes. With her heart was thumping from shock and fear, she reflexively put a hand to her chest. Emma had thought for a fleeting moment George's men had found her before she found them. Instead, it was the last person she wanted to see. But frankly, she wasn't that surprised to see him here, which should worry her more than it actually did.

Rolling his eyes, Killian reached a hand around her head and pulled down the hood of the black cloak she was wearing. With an outrageous scoff, Emma immediately flipped it back over her head. Killian glanced at her tiredly before he pulled it off again, saying with an obnoxious tone, "You're not doing yourself any favors with that on, love."

With an incredulous gasp, Emma roughly flicked his vest. "Yeah, well, you're one to talk. Those buttons aren't just for show, you know," she countered disdainfully. Was it that necessary to always have that much of his chest showing? Not that she noticed, of course. Emma saw him start to smirk, a wicked glint entering his eyes, and she regretted ever trying to take a jab at his clothing too. He would twist whatever she would say.

Fortunately, he didn't throw back an innuendo, and instead dryly implored, "Care to explain why you've taken a sudden interest in traipsing around in the trees?"

"Have you been following me?" Emma demanded, narrowing her eyes accusingly. She knew he had been watching her at home, but following her out here? Seriously?

Killian shrugged indifferently. "Maybe," he replied, an innocent and charming grin on his face that told Emma he was definitely anything but innocent.

"Why can't you just go run off to another realm already?" Emma frustratingly hissed, throwing her hands up frenetically in the air at him.

He narrowed his blue eyes mockingly at her, still grinning. "How can I when you're so obviously up to something?"

"I'm not up to anything," Emma whispered hostilely. She was going after George. Alone. And could he be any louder? George and his men could be close, she didn't want them spotting her first, and she certainly didn't want him distracting her.

"Then why are you whispering?" Killian asked, whispering as well now, moving his head down only centimeters away from her face.

Emma roughly pushed him away from her. "Back off," she ordered sternly, her heart already fluttering erratically from his close proximity for just those few seconds.

Killian threw her an exasperated look before asking more seriously, "What are you doing out here?"

"Nothing," Emma replied shortly. She started to walk away from him, but he grabbed her around the waist and used his free hand to start poking around in her pockets. "Stop it!" Emma gasped outrageously, boiling with anger. She hectically tried to kick and tear herself away from him. This was so completely uncalled for. When he found the paper she had been trying to hide, he suddenly let go of her waist, causing her to tumble unceremoniously to the ground.

"This?" Killian held up George's wanted poster, skepticism and amusement in his voice, "This is what you've snuck out here to do?"

"What's it to you?" Emma growled, glaring at him as she stood up and brushed herself off.

"If you don't recall, I was there for one of your little run-ins with him," Killian replied scathingly, his eyes darkening, "That man definitely didn't get on my good side."

Emma pretended to be shocked. "You have a good side?" she asked dryly.

He glowered at her. "If you're going after him, I'll help you," Killian sighed, folding the poster up and sticking inside his coat pocket.

She reached over and grabbed the poster from his coat. If he wanted a poster, he could get his own. This was her poster. "No," she told him indignantly.

"I wasn't asking for your permission," Killian said, his voice quiet with warning.

Gritting her teeth together, Emma fumed, "I don't need your help."

"So let me get this straight," Killian theorized, crossing his arms in exaggerated contemplation, "you're going to capture and bring in a man, an elderly one," he relented with humor, "but one still twice your size nonetheless, all by yourself, while still somehow evading all of his guards?" Killian pondered, obviously making fun of her. Whatever. She didn't have to justify anything to him. Besides, that's not even what she was planning to do. With a contemptuous glare, Emma marched away from him. After a moment, she heard his appalled voice, "You're not going to try to kill him, are you?"

Emma turned around and saw him staring at her incredulously. "Oh, don't look so scandalized," Emma snapped, not wanting to think about it. If she thought about it, she wouldn't be able to do it. She shouldn't feel guilty. How many times had he tried to kill her? Her anger was what was driving her now. "It's not like it's something you're unfamiliar with," she caustically muttered, turning to walk away from him again.

"I may not be, but you are," Killian heatedly argued from behind her, "You're not a killer, Emma."

"Watch me," Emma hissed, not bothering to look at him. She could, and would, do this and him trying to stop her was only making her more determined.

He grabbed her arm and spun her around. She was met with intense blue eyes burning through her. "You don't have to try to prove anything to me," Killian stated, his voice determined and aggressive.

"This isn't about you," Emma menacingly sneered, violently tearing her arm away from him. And it wasn't. Mostly.

"Then what is it about?" Killian urged, his eyes blazing. The seriousness and genuine interest in his question rattled her. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Emma remained silent and quickly started to stride away from him. "Please, enlighten me," he called, his voice turning sarcastic at her retreating form, "Your excuses are always so riveting."

"Oh go back to Agrabah!" she irately sputtered back at him, a last-ditch effort on her part to get him to leave her alone.

Emma determinately marched forward, continuing her search, but she couldn't concentrate knowing he was still behind her. Whipping around, she hotly ordered, "Stop following me."

"Let me think about it…" he said lightly, a cheery smile forming on his face. It quickly disappeared. Eyes turning into a hard glare, Killian spat, "No."

Raging, Emma balled her fists and had to resist the urge to hit him. He was definitely the most frustrating man she had ever met. Couldn't he take a hint? Getting ready to climb a tree, hoping his hook wouldn't allow him to follow her up there, she noticed red stains on her hands and looked down to see blood seeping from her side. Her arrow wound must have opened back up when she was dumped on the ground. This was just fantastic. She was bleeding before she even made it to George. "Now look what you made me do," Emma furiously barked, putting pressure on her side in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

"What exactly am I to be blamed for this time?" Killian questioned, his voice weary and sardonic.

"My wound opened back up," Emma irritability grunted, huffing in annoyance.

Killian paused and looked at her with reluctant concern. "Is it bleeding?" he implored, walking toward her. Emma stopped, overwhelmed with déjà vu. This seemed all too familiar. An idea popped in her head and it was beginning to look like things might finally go her way today. She turned her shoulders away from him, getting her fist ready. "Here," Killian gave out a frustrated growl when she moved away form him again, "Emma, stop being so bloody stubborn and let me help you." The moment he was in front of her, Emma swung her fist up and hit him as hard as she could across the temple. He fell to the ground. Her heart dropped when she saw she had successfully knocked him out, again, and immediately felt bad, now that she knew what it felt to have that happen to you, but a girl has to do what a girl has to do. Emma grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him over to a shadier part of the forest, kicking some leaves over him to try to hide him better if George's men, or anyone else, did end up coming this way and happen to find him when he was still unconscious. After she got him settled, she was on her way again.

As it got closer to dusk, Emma was almost ready to call it quits and start her search again tomorrow when she saw a flash of movement to her right. Perched up in a tree, she quietly climbed down to a lower branch and spotted a man wearing a dark blue, worn out looking tunic and a silver helmet. One of George's men. She quickly hopped down and crept up behind him, following him. Her heart started to pound and her stomach turned to knots in anticipation. She could do this. She just had to stay calm and keep a level head.

The man stopped when he came to a clearing. George's camp was hidden away on a small ridge, tucked between the rocky side of a mountain and the high edge of a ravine. Emma had to admit, it was a good hiding spot. She would have never thought to look in a place like this because it was a place she would have never chosen for herself. There were only two ways to get to it, through the woods, where she now was, or the narrow, steep path on the other side. Plus, that cliff looked very daunting and she would have been afraid of something, or someone, accidently going off the edge. It wasn't a place suited for attacks, which would work well for her, but was a disadvantage for him. Emma spotted George sitting by a rudimentary fire, only five men around him at the camp. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. This was no time to lose her nerve.

Emma climbed up into one of the trees and shot an arrow toward the camp, deliberately missing anyone. She was just baiting his men to come searching in the woods for the attacker, leaving George alone. As the group ducked and scattered at the appearance of the arrow, she saw George furiously stand up and direct his men toward the woods. Emma smirked and once his men had passed below her, she jumped down and snuck up behind George on the ridge.

She held the tip of her sword at his back. "I wouldn't move a centimeter if I were you," Emma warned, her voice stern and cold.

"Emma," George spit, chuckling humorlessly. He raised his arms up in submission and slowly turned around to face her. Emma poked her sword harder into his chest. "How nice to see you again."

"Believe me," Emma replied distastefully. She circled around him so that her back was to the mountainside now, instead of the forest where his men would be coming back soon from, "the pleasure's all mine."

"Why have you so graciously sought me out tonight, your Majesty?" George asked, glowering at her. Five men returned from the woods, getting ready to charge at her, but George held up a hand, stopping them.

Glaring, Emma contemptuously snarled, "I'm just paying you back for shooting me with that arrow." Her heart was flying rapidly and she didn't think she had ever been this nervous. She tried to keep telling herself that this man deserved this. He was the whole reason she was now indebted to Rumplestiltskin.

"I never shot you with any arrow," George retorted disdainfully, "But I applaud the person who did."

Emma saw the genuine denial on his face. "You're lying, it had to be you," she stubbornly accused, slightly thrown. No, her father had been sure. Who else would shoot her? Everyone else that was after her would've used magic. The main reason that strengthened her resolve for coming after him crumbled before her eyes, along with the plan she was so sure of, and she had no idea what she should do now.

"Believe what you want," George replied, his voice bored. He studied her smugly, "Are you here to kill me?"

"It's not anything less than what you deserve," Emma spat, though her voice was not as harsh as she wanted it to be. She wasn't sure if she could go through with it, now that she was actually here and standing in front of him.

"What I deserved was my family," George heatedly countered. And for the first time in her life, Emma saw real emotion in his eyes.

"I'm sorry about your wife and you son," she told him sincerely, "But you could've had a family, a different one."

George paused and Emma could see the wheels turning in his head. "Do you think you could still ever see me as such?" he asked, his voice feigning empathy. She knew what he was trying to do and she wasn't fooled. But she knew she couldn't kill him regardless. Killian was right. She wasn't a killer. Her father was right. She should have never come out here. Her frustration, confusion, and anger had blinded her and now she was in a situation she wasn't sure how to get out of. Emma loosened her stance and lowered her sword a fraction of an inch for a split second, distracted by her racing thoughts, but George capitalized on the opportunity. His foot kicked sharply into her chest and sent her flying backwards. She hit the stone wall of the mountain, paralyzed from shock and pain, and accidently dropped her sword; the wind completely knocked out of her.

"Like I said, Charming was never my son," George acidly reiterated, thinking her hesitation was from his plea. He brought his forearm to her throat and violently lifter her slightly and jammed her into the mountainside, the backside of her head hitting the stone. Pricking spasms sent waves of affliction through her head. "And I thought I guaranteed that you would never be born," George growled, his voice disgusted. Emma could barely focus on what he was saying. His arm was crushing her air source and her head was still spinning from her head injury, "You're weak, just like him."

She couldn't believe what was happening. George was probably going to kill her. And it was all her fault. Through her blurred vision, she saw three figures charging down the narrow hill to her left. "Dad?" she whispered, her voice hoarse and strangulated.

George turned to see what she had spotted. "This is perfect," he exclaimed, strangely enthused. He suddenly dropped his hold on her and Emma weakly tumbled to the ground, gasping for air. She saw George's men charge toward her dad and the two guards he had brought with him. I guess he had noticed she had left after all. And she was extremely grateful that her father knew her well enough to know where she would be. George stopped one of them, ordering, "Take care of her, I've got bigger fish to fry."

The guard sauntered toward Emma, a sly smirk forming on his face. Still on the ground, she fumbled for her sword. Okay, so she wasn't completely out of the woods yet. The man suddenly froze and Emma heard the slash of a sword before she saw it protruding from his chest. The instant it was removed, the guard fell to the ground.

"What are you doing here?" Emma asked breathlessly, a little perturbed over the man's death, but still extremely relieved and elated to see Killian standing in front of her. She was stunned to see him. Even after she had knocked him out for the umpteenth time, he still followed her. She was still extremely mad at him, but her heart was soaring nonetheless.

"You can't get rid of me that easily," Killian haughtily smirked, obviously pleased by her reaction. He held out his hand and helped her to her feet, "I probably deserved that one," he conceded, his voice light as he pointed up to his head. Emma beamed at him and he grinned back at her before they turned to their attention back to fight. Her father and the guards had already defeated George's men and all that was left was George standing near the edge of the cliff, grasping his side. Emma could see the blood coming from there and his head, and his sword was cast on the ground feet away from him.

"Give it up, George." Charming thundered, his sword out and ready. Her father glanced over her from across the ridge and did a double take when he saw Killian standing beside her. Charming cast him a quick, skeptical look, his brows furrowed, before he focused his attention back on the white-haired man standing ahead of them, nearing the edge of the ravine cliff, "It's over."

Blood drizzling from his mouth, George hastily darted his eyes between her and Charming, as if he were making some sort of last minute decision. He suddenly spit out a mirthless laugh. "Never," George hissed, whipping out a knife and throwing it directly at Charming.

Emma reflexively reached out a hand. "No!" she hysterically bellowed. A wave of light burst from her chest in such a strong eruption it sent the knife and everyone, herself included, flying to the ground. Her body aching, Emma stayed sprawled out on her back trying to catch her breath. Everything was hazy. Her magic had never been that strong except for when Regina attempted to rip out her heart. Seeing George's knife fly at her dad had terrified her and she wasn't going to let him die for another one of her stupid decisions. The only reason he was here was because of her. After a few quiet moments, Emma attempted to stand up, wincing in the process. Beside her, Killian had started to stir as well and had garnered enough strength to sit up, but her father and the rest of the guards were still lying on their backs.

She glanced over and saw George's body lying deadly still next to the edge of the ravine. Her magic hadn't killed him had it? He hadn't been faring well before she knocked everyone over and it might have been the final punch. Emma slowly began to make her way over there, studying him cautiously along the way.

From the corner of her eye, she saw her father start to gain consciousness. "Emma, be careful," Charming ordered as he watched her edge along the side of cliff, his voice strained.

"Is he dead?" Killian asked her, his voice quiet and curious. She could hear him stand up, attempting to follow her over there.

Emma stopped and stood in front of George's body. He was lying on his side facing away from her, so she couldn't tell if he was breathing or not. She started to feel sick to her stomach as she hesitantly reached for him to turn him over. The moment Emma touched him, George's eyes popped open, sending of a wave of terror through her body. He seized her ankle as he rolled himself off the edge of cliff and into the ravine below, taking her with him.

Her heart in her throat, Emma spiraled into a free fall before she was suddenly halted mid-air. The unexpected jolt sent painful shockwaves through her body and her hands scraped agonizingly against the side of the ravine as she reflexively tried to stop herself as well. The sound of her heart and blood rushing in her ears and her breathing erratically uneven, Emma looked up and Killian leaning over the edge, his hook latched through the strap of her quiver. "I've got you," Killian reassured. The strain from holding her up was written on his face, but Emma could see the relief in his eyes. With straps now cutting painfully into her shoulders, she gave him the best smile she could muster. Glancing down at the river below, Emma could see George's body lying on the banks. She quickly averted her eyes, knots forming in her chest at the sight. She wasn't sad or happy about his death, she just felt sorry for him now.

"Emma," her father breathed, anxiety palpable in his voice, as he crawled up next to Killian. He reached down toward her, "Give me your other hand." Emma grasped Killian's forearm with her right hand and took in her dad's in her left, and together they pulled her up.

The moment they pulled her to her feet, though, she felt herself wobble forward. Killian wrapped an arm around her waist, steadying her. "Careful," he chided, chuckling breathlessly. She wanted to tell him to move his hold on her waist higher, if not completely remove it, when her father, who already disliked him, was standing right there. But her head started to spin dizzily and her vision started to blur. Words wouldn't come out of her mouth.

"Emma, your head," her father's anxious voice came from behind her.

Trying to smile, Emma put a hand to the back of her head, only to feel something wet and sticky. "What?" she dazedly mused. She brought her hand down and saw it dripping with blood. Weird. That wasn't normal. Memories flooded through her. Oh, right. She _had_ hit her head. Killian glanced down at her hand, alarm filling his eyes as he tried to turn her around, but she was suddenly just so tired. Emma's strength left her body and she stumbled forward, losing consciousness.

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Emma woke up in her bed, lying on her side, her brain feeling a little fuzzy. As she rolled over and began to sit up, she spotted her parents talking with Red over by the door. "Mom?" she called, her voice hoarse and crackly from dehydration. A quick dizziness washed over her and she reached up and felt bandages uncomfortably wrapped around her forehead, holding in place a gauze on the back of her head. Ugh, hopefully they would let her take these off soon, if not now. "Dad?"

"You're awake," Snow answered with a smile, beaming and relieved. She walked over and sat down on the bed beside her. Emma was surprised, expecting her to be angry about running off to go after George, but that was fine with her. She would take this over her mother's disappointed anger any day.

Her father moved toward her as well, concernedly asking, "How are you feeling?"

Details coming back to her, Emma remembered passing out in Killian's arms. "Where's," Emma began, about to say 'Killian' but stopped herself since her parents would have no clue who she was talking about, "Hook?"

Charming immediately started to glower. "In the dungeon where he belongs," he muttered darkly.

Emma stared up at him disbelievingly. He put him in there even after he had just saved her life right in front of him? "Dad, you can't be serious," Emma implored dubiously. As much as Killian infuriated her and even though she was still feeling hurt by him, a cell was not a good place for him when he had the likes of two sorcerers after him.

"I can't believe you went after George," Charming countered, his voice rising furiously, "After I specifically said-"

"I'm sorry," Emma quietly offered despondently. And she meant it with all of her heart. Going after George had been a stupid decision and had almost gotten them killed. With everything going on, she hadn't been able to think straight and had just blindly listened to an impulse, selfishly trying to gain control over something and prove something that didn't need proving. She couldn't believe she actually thought she could kill someone in cold blood like that.

"You almost got yourself killed," her father heatedly continued, pointing an angry finger at her.

Snow put a hand on his arm, attempting to lower it and calm him, gently saying, "Everything's fine now."

"I'm surprised you're being this calm about it," Charming said, looking at her incredulously and voicing Emma's thoughts. But then again, her mother had always had a knowing look in her when Emma returned from Neverland and always stayed mum on the subject of Killian, unlike her father.

Wanting to discuss and argue about all of this later and get Killian out of the dungeon before Regina, or worse Rumplestiltskin, got word of them locking him up. Either one of them would probably just poof up in the cell with him and rip his heart out. Besides, she felt bad that he was locked up after he had helped her. "Will you just let Hook leave?" Emma asked pleadingly, sneaking a glance over at her mirror to make sure it was still covered. Much to her relief, it was.

It was her turn to receive her father's intense incredulity. "Emma, he kidnapped you."

"He didn't kidnap me," Emma corrected, her voice sharp. She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. She finally confessed, "I went to Neverland because I wanted to."

"Why?" Snow asked, curiosity washed over her face as she gave Emma her full attention.

"We made a deal," Emma explained, trying to act nonchalant about it.

Bracing himself, Charming authoritatively implored, "What kind of deal?"

"If I helped him with his revenge," Emma began lightly, but then reluctantly muttered, "he would help me go after Regina."

"Why would you do something like that?" Snow suddenly irately exploded, throwing the support Emma thought she might have from her regarding Killian out the window.

"He's a pirate, Emma," Charming hotly debated, "and a criminal."

"Stop," Emma furiously interjected, quieting their incensed rants, "He may be all of those things but he's saved my life more than once," she told them confidently, hoping to persuade them, "All he wants is his revenge and you can't deny the world would be a whole lot better without the Dark One in it."

"That doesn't mean-"

"I'll go release him," Emma declared, her voice stern and final as she attempted to stand up off the bed.

"Emma, I don't know…" Snow said, her voice hesitant as she studied Emma unsurely.

"If I promise not to go after Regina any more, will you let him go?" Emma bargained, trying to hide desperation from filling her voice, "After what just happened, I'm realizing it was a mistake to ever think I could. That's not what's important right now," she added, trailing off quietly. No, there were bigger things at stake now. She had entire kingdom she was going to start having to take care of. She had to stop obsessing over old scores she selfishly wanted to settle.

There was a moment of silence between them, Snow's gaze torn and contemplative. "Do you what you think is best," she conceded reluctantly.

"You can't be serious," Charming started to protest, a look of defeat on his face.

"Thank you," Emma said, appreciatively squeezing her mother's hand, "Is he up in the tower?"

"Not exactly," Charming replied, guilt washing over his face, but she could see a bit smug amusement flickering in his eyes.

Realizing what he was getting at, Emma gaped at him disbelievingly. "You've got to be kidding me."

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Emma was relieved when she finally made it down to Rumplestiltskin's old cell after what seemed like the longest walk of her life. Hearing footsteps, she saw Killian stand up and lean against the pointed bars. An amused grin flitted across his face when he saw it was her. "Don't you just look lovely," Killian quipped, referring to the bandages wrapped around the top of her head.

She threw him a pointed look, trying not to smile. "This is the same cell where my parents kept Rumplestiltskin," Emma informed him wryly, coming to stand in front of him.

"The irony isn't lost on me," Killian sighed, a bored tone in his voice. "How's your head?" he asked more seriously.

"Fine," Emma disconcertedly muttered, hating being injured, as she pushed down on the lever to open the cell doors, "You're free to go," she announced to him, flourishing her hand toward the exit with a tired smile on her face.

"Is this legitimate or a jail break on your part?" Killian questioned, a skeptical eyebrow raised, walking out of the cell to come stand in front of her.

Rolling her eyes, Emma handed him back his hook that her father had taken. He was taking the 'protective father' act a little too far. "It's legitimate," she told him, her voice flat.

"Thank you, your Highness," Killian said, slight bowing to her with an infuriating smirk on his face. His blue eyes shone bemusedly, "Your father doesn't seem too fond of me."

"Are you surprised?" Emma dubiously questioned as she crossed her arms, her eyebrows raised challengingly, "And don't call me that," she added, a little embarrassed. It sounded too weird coming from him. She didn't like it.

Killian shrugged nonchalantly. "No, I guess not," he said, chuckling lightly as he attached his hook back on with an audible click.

Pointing at the dried blood that had been coming from his nose, Emma skeptically asked, "He did that?"

"Well I wasn't going to fight him back when you were passed out in his arms now, was I?" Killian sardonically objected, looking appalled.

"How noble of you," Emma commented dryly.

He gave her an impish look. "Your magic was different today," Killian added, his eyes filled with puzzlement and intrigue.

"How so?" Emma asked, dismayed by the worry that was seeping into her voice.

"It was just as powerful, if not more," Killian said reassuringly, noticing her anxiety, "it just wasn't as… bright, I guess," he mused, contemplation in his eyes, "Is it the Enchanted Forest?"

"Maybe," Emma shrugged, remembering how hard it had been to gain control over it again once she had gotten back, "It definitely feels different than it did in Neverland. It's been getting better, though," she added defensively with a wry, optimistic smile.

"The more I've been traveling lately, the more I've noticing what you use to ramble on about it," Killian observed with a teasing smirk, "about how the magic's been changing."

"Really?" Emma asked engagingly, surprised that he would even remember or notice.

"Agrabah seemed almost completely desolate of magic," Killian acknowledged, waving his hand knowledgeably in the air, "while Oz was flourishing in it. And here it's…" he trailed off, searching for the right words, finally settling on, "somewhere in the middle," Killian sighed.

"And waning," Emma despondently murmured, mostly to herself. She couldn't stop the next words from tumbling out of her mouth, "There have been these other attacks on parts of the kingdom I can't seem to figure out either." She wasn't sure why she was even talking to him about this, but for some reason she couldn't help always spilling her guts to him. Besides, it was just nice to talk to him normally again.

"What do you mean?" Killian inquired, staring at her fixedly.

"It's like magic I've never seen before," Emma bleakly concluded, her voice quiet and soft as her eyes glazed over, her thoughts dwelling on her recent nightmare now.

"So that's what's been bothering you lately," Killian coaxingly intoned, like he was relieved some great mystery had finally been revealed to him, and before Emma could respond, his hand brushed across her cheek, the electricity and warmth making her lose her thought process and her breath. She could see all the shades of blue in his eyes and all the hidden flecks of gold there, along with the intent that was rushing through them.

"Don't," she pleaded, putting a hand up to his chest. He hadn't even kissed her yet and she already felt overwhelmed by what she was feeling. It freaked her out. Emma didn't want to be in this type of position with anyone ever again. She wasn't sure if she could survive being broken again, especially by him. She did her best to hold on to the anger she had been feeling toward him and focus on that, because no matter what, Emma knew she would always be second to his vengeance.

"But I thought…" Killian began, looking confused and taken aback.

Emma narrowed her green eyes at him accusingly, "You thought what exactly?" Okay, now she was mad that he would just _assume_ she would come back falling into his arms like they still didn't have any problems to be worked out.

Killian froze, searching her face confusedly for a moment, before fury overtook his eyes, "Why are you being so stubborn?"

"Why are you being so persistent?" Emma countered, just as furious.

Unflinching resolve colored his eyes, and before Emma could protest, his lips landed hungrily on hers. She immediately tried to push him off of her, but he latched his hand onto the back of her neck, holding her in place. Everything inside her melted and within seconds, she was kissing him with just as much fervor. She was completely lost in him. It was different from their first kiss. It was more urgent. More insistent. She inhaled his breath, felt his tongue in her mouth, rolling on top of hers, almost as if he wanted to devour her. Emma arched into him, wanting to get closer and wanting more. His lips moved down her jaw line, his tongue and teeth scraping down her neck, making her shudder. But when she heard him whisper her name, everything seemed to snap back into focus. Everything was so right about it, which made is so wrong. It wouldn't last and she didn't want to end up in pieces when it did.

"Stop!" Emma desperately bellowed, shoving him away, pain coursing through her. Her heart felt like a drum in her chest and she knew without even looking that her lips were swollen. Killian stumbled backwards, taken off guard. He looked stunned for a moment before hurt and outrage flashed through his eyes.

"Why can't you just trust me?" Killian vehemently argued, his voice echoing throughout the cave, "I just spent the entire day chasing you through the bloody mountains!"

"Congratulations on your one day of mountain climbing," Emma caustically hissed, glaring at him incredulously, "You betrayed me after Neverland and I know you say it was to protect me, but I can't trust you won't ever do something like to me again," she hysterically sputtered out, desperate for him to understand, "You are so consumed with your revenge, you will literally do anything for it," her voice was starting to break, "You don't care about collateral damage or people you may hurt in the process, including me."

He looked like she'd slapped him. "You've got me all figured out, don't you?" Killian maliciously drawled, his words cutting through her, "Then tell me why I've been following you around for the past two weeks instead out of looking for portals," he venomously roared. Emma didn't think she had ever seen him this angry before and she couldn't form a coherent thought. "Is Princess Emma finally out of excuses?" he tauntingly mocked.

"Go to hell," Emma acidly spat, riled up by his provocations now.

His eyes darkening, he pulled her flush against him, huskily whispering, "As long as you come with me." Emma quickly used all her strength to push him away, already starting to feel her body betray her. She had to get as far away from him as possible if she was going to hold her resolve and not give herself over to him right then and there. Turning sharply on her heel, Emma determinately marched toward the exit.

"So that's it then?" Killian bitingly called, his tone causing her to freeze, "I hurt your feelings once and you're just going to shut me out forever?"

Emma wildly whipped around. "You didn't hurt my feelings," she indignantly protested, sending him a look of disgust. She saw a malicious smirk form on his lips, reveling that he had hit a nerve.

"What _did_ I do then?" he fierily implored, bitterness etching his features as he walked toward her.

She stared up at him, distressed and speechless. She didn't have an answer. She had been avoiding and running from that question for the past six months, too afraid to find out what the answer was. Her fight or flight instinct was screaming at her. And she was choosing to fly. Finally, Emma unevenly stammered out, "Are we done here?"

"I'm the only one that's here for you, love," Killian obstinately pressed, almost growling at her.

"Are we done here?" Emma repeated louder than before, finding her voice and confidence again.

Killian moved toward her face with an intimidating air. "Far from it," he spit, his voice viscous and scathing, before sullenly striding out of the cave. Emma stood there until she could no longer see him.

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A/N: So George is dead... and Emma and Killian just had a major fight. Their relationship is still pretty rocky at this point and lately, Emma has been using her magic without even really thinking about it and she is going to start learning that magic _always _comes with a price. She hasn't really noticed the effects of it yet, but every time she has used it, something negative has happened in her life. That's why it was important to me to have this major falling out with Killian in the same chapter that she used magic to save her dad, hence why this chapter is so long lol.

Thoughts/opinions?

And if anyone was wondering, because I had to look it up, 'quiver' is the proper term for what you hold your arrows in on your back.

Please leave a review if you can and thanks again for reading!

Love you all! :)

**Next Chapter Summary**: As Emma prepares for her 21st birthday, more of her past is exposed when she confronts Caroline, hoping to reconcile their friendship since Emma is starting to fear more inevitable destruction is coming to the Enchanted Forest, and soon; meanwhile, Regina attempts to strike a deal with Emma, but a shocking revelation could change everything.


	11. Chapter Ten

Hey! I feel like it took me longer than usual to get this chapter out, so I apologize, I guess I'm just really nervous about it! Thank you all so much for your continued support of this story. It's what keeps me motivated :) especially since my next semester of college just started! Blah! I hate school already again and it's only be three days lol anyways, I hope you like the update! Also, as just a reminder, Caroline/Luke are Abigail and Frederick's kids.

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**Chapter Ten**

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**Two Months Later**

Emma rode in the bustling courtyard of the castle where Caroline was now living with William, along with Pinocchio and a couple her palace guards. She would have preferred to be less ostentatious and just be accompanied by Pinocchio, but if this was going to be considered an official diplomatic meeting and not just two ex-friends hashing it out, she would have to play by the rules. They had been traveling for almost two days, the new fortress resting near the coast. She would have normally been excited and eager at the prospect of getting to see the ocean again, but lately, when she thought of the sea, she thought of ships, and when she thought of ships, she thought of… Emma didn't even want to go there right now, especially since their traveling had done nothing but make her uneasiness at seeing Caroline grow. The last thing she needed before going in there to confront her were her Killian problems on the brain. She couldn't believe she was about to do this.

Pinocchio let out a low whistle beside her as she hopped off her horse. "Take a look at this place," he whispered in an impressed voice.

Emma cast a weary look around. It was something. Newly built, the high walls were gleaming and sturdy, but it looked like a fortress more than anything. She was beginning to wonder if Caroline was suspicious on what was going on in the Enchanted Forest, but Emma couldn't concentrate enough to dwell on it at the moment. "Nice," Emma muttered, fidgeting with her clothes too much. Tight knots were forming in her stomach as she thought over what she was going to say.

"Do you want me to go in with you?" Pinocchio implored in a quiet voice, conscious of the guards who were probably listening.

"No," Emma replied, taking a deep breath. It was a pregnant girl, not an ogre. And it wasn't like she was in the wrong here. She waved a hand at the guards, "Just hang around with here with them."

He raised his hand into a two-finger salute, saying, "Aye, aye, Captain."

"What?" Emma quickly cried, rounding on him, blanching slightly.

"It was joke," Pinocchio articulated after a startled pause, staring at her like she was crazy.

"Right," Emma grumbled under her breath, embarrassed at her reaction. Maybe she really was crazy. She hadn't even seen the _Captain_ in almost two months and she still couldn't shake him from her thoughts, so much so she started freaking out at mere references that might be related to him.

Emma left Pinocchio with the men and made her way over to the main castle entrance, where two guards greeted her. They both bowed, recognizing her, formally greeting, "Your Majesty."

"I'm here to see Queen Caroline," Emma stated, her voice even and flat, but the word 'queen' still seemed to roll off her tongue distastefully. She still hadn't been able to wrap her head around someone she had known all of her life being in charge now. It was something she knew was always going to happen, but Emma never imagined it this soon. Plus, it had never been Caroline that was suppose to take over…

The guard on the right nodded at her and motioned for her to follow him, "Right this way, Your Majesty."

She was led into the throne room, where Caroline was sitting in one of the chairs, waiting for her. Emma immediately began to feel sick at seeing her resemblance to her brother. They were twins and had always looked alike, but Emma didn't expect it to still affect her so much. Caroline was tall and willowy, like her mother Abigail, and had long, dark blonde hair. Her dark blue eyes were currently glaring at Emma disdainfully.

"Leave us," Caroline commanded to the guard, and once they were alone, she stood up and strode purposively over to Emma, caustically greeting, "Well, if it isn't Little Miss Savior."

Emma's blood started to boil. This wasn't going to be easy. Caroline knew exactly what to say get under her skin. Trying to control her temper, Emma opted for feigned politeness, evenly saying, "I like the new place."

"What are you doing here?" Caroline sternly demanded, ignoring Emma's attempt at some small talk.

She was still at a loss at how to start what she came here to say. Every speech and monologue she had recited in her head on the way here disappeared from her memory the moment she had walked through the door. "Congratulations," Emma quickly sputtered out, waving a hand at Caroline's stomach. There was no baby bulge there yet, but she would get the gist of gesture.

"We're very happy," Caroline snapped in annoyance, "You have some nerve showing up here like this."

"I just want to talk," Emma appealed woefully, her voice pleading.

Caroline raised a challenging eyebrow at her. "About what?"

Emma took a deep breath. "I want to you stop taking out your dislike of me on my parents and ally with our kingdom again," she proposed rationally and respectfully.

"Why should I?" Caroline snippily implored.

"The entire Enchanted Kingdom is close to falling apart right now," Emma replied, staring at her outrageously.

"You're kingdom is one of the ones actually still somewhat prospering," Caroline acknowledged airily.

"We're just one kingdom, though," Emma hotly argued, "We all need to be united, especially after all the weird deaths that have been happening too."

Caroline visibly stiffened. "_Weird_ deaths?" she repeated hesitantly, her voice coming out a higher pitch than normal. Emma had mentioned all the weird murders on a gamble to see if they had been happening in this kingdom too, and it looks like she had been right.

Emma studied her knowingly, keenly alleging, "They've been happening here too, haven't they?"

"You're making assumptions," Caroline coolly cautioned, a glare forming in her eyes.

"I know when you're lying, Caroline," Emma frustratingly debated, "I've known you almost my entire life. We used to be friends."

Narrowing her eyes hostilely, Caroline replied, "A lot of things have changed since then."

"It's time we put our differences aside-" Emma slowly began, trying to steer the conversation away from where she knew it was headed.

"Our _differences_?" Caroline interrupted, indignantly sneering, her voice rising in accusation, "You're the reason my brother is dead."

"Your brother didn't die," Emma jaggedly croaked. This was exactly what she didn't want to talk about, but what she knew they would talk about anyway. A painful lump in her throat was making it hard to breathe. She knew this story better than anyone, "He left."

"That's a lie," Caroline acidly objected, "I knew my brother better than anyone and he would have never abandoned his family without a word."

"Well he did," Emma offensively snapped, reaching her breaking point, bitterly railing, "Maybe you didn't know him as well as you thought you did."

"How dare you," Caroline madly exclaimed, gasping incredulously, "He was my _twin_ brother."

"He handed me over to Regina," Emma rancorously reminded her. That was the truth, no matter what Caroline wanted to think.

"He loved you," Caroline fervently claimed, her voice shaking, "I know he did."

Emma felt a searing pain constricting in her chest. Once upon a time, she had believed that too. "He loved the girl he left to find," she solemnly corrected.

"No. Regina killed him," Caroline briskly and unabashedly declared, "Because of you."

"Believe whatever you want," Emma cynically countered, her voice on the edge of breaking. Caroline hadn't been there, she wasn't the one to have a hand shoved into her chest or to be betrayed so deeply that completely shutting down was the only option, "it doesn't change the fact that he is gone. He's never coming back."

"I know that," Caroline furiously hissed, "I know that better than anyone." With a deep breath, Caroline paused, taking a moment to get a hold of herself, before bitterly asking, "Why did you come here?"

"Things are starting to change," Emma rigidly asserted, "It's not going to get any better. And we all need to be ready when the time comes that…" What did she think was going to happen? All she had were hunches. All she had is what she thought the magic inside of her was trying to tell her. And it was telling her that something bad was coming.

"When the time comes for what?" Caroline impatiently repeated. Upon seeing Emma's anxious expression, though, she turned more serious and concerned, "Emma, what do you know?"

"I don't know anything," Emma bleakly disclosed, elaborating, "I just have theories, I just have-"

"Magic?" Caroline interjected, completing her sentence for her. After a look of confirmation from Emma, Caroline's features hardened, "I gave up on magic a long time ago."

"Caroline-" Emma pleadingly began, knowing that Caroline still blamed her for not using her magic to save Luke as well, even though there had been nothing to save.

"I think it's time for you to leave," Caroline warningly advised.

Frustrated that she still had not accomplished what she had come here to do, Emma irritably sighed "Please just consider-"

"I'll consider what you said," Caroline said, cutting her off, radiating nothing but calmness now. She nodded toward the exit, "Now please leave."

Confirming what she had hoped wasn't true, that this was a hopeless case, she took a step back. "I'm sorry," Emma quietly murmured, not sure if Caroline could even hear her, before heading out the door.

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"How it'd go?" Snow asked eagerly the moment Emma and Pinocchio walked back into the castle.

"Don't ask," Pinocchio warningly bellowed, not stopping to talk.

Emma sent a withering glare at his retreating figure. "Terrible," she related miserably. Going there had been a mistake; she had accomplished nothing except drag up old, harrowing feelings she would rather not be stressed with at the moment. She had just let herself get railed by Caroline too, unable to fully defend herself from the guilt she had felt.

"What happened?" her mother implored concernedly.

"She was just…" Emma began, trying to find the right words. She frustratingly relented, "Caroline. I really don't want to talk about it." Emma glanced around and saw more people than usual bustling hurriedly around the corridor. "What's going on here?"

Snow waved a dismissive hand in the air with a smile, excitedly saying, "We're just making some more preparations for your ball."

"Oh. Right," Emma mumbled flatly. She had been trying to forget about that.

"You could sound a little more excited about your birthday," Snow playfully chided.

"It just seems inappropriate," Emma unenthusiastically admitted. She already hated the excess of attention of having a ball, but with everything going on it just made it seem worse. Besides, it's not like anyone she would really want to see on her birthday would be there.

Pursing her lips, Snow quietly continued, "Emma, it's customary to have one when you turn twenty-one."

"I know," Emma tiredly sighed. That didn't mean she had to be excited about it.

"One night is not going to send the world crashing down," Snow told her reassuringly, giving her arm an affectionate squeeze.

Emma crossed her arms over her chest. She knew she was right, one night wouldn't cause the kingdom to go spiraling into devastation, but she couldn't help but feel this strange sense of foreboding about it. It was really starting to irk her. "With our luck, that's exactly what _will_ happen," Emma replied, bitterness and defeat rising up in her voice.

"I won't allow it," her mother coaxingly stated, a determined smile crossing her face.

Wearily returning the smile, Emma reluctantly asked, "Do you need help with anything?"

"Do you really mean that?" Snow countered, eyeing her speculatively and knowingly.

"Not really," Emma sheepishly admitted. All she wanted to do at this point was going to her bed and sleep and forget about life for a while.

"Then no," Snow said giving her a pointed look, instructing, "Just go rest."

Extremely grateful, Emma slowly meandered up to her room, physically and emotionally worn out. Could anything else possibly happen? She walked in her room and saw her floor length mirror uncovered. Of course it could. Someone must have been cleaning up her room when she was gone. Trudging across the room to fix it, Emma was suddenly startled by the reflection of Regina in her mirror.

"Hello, Princess," Regina sardonically drawled, a reproachful sneer on her face.

"What the hell?" Emma snarled, jumping back from the mirror, taking a defensive stance. Killian hadn't mentioned that she could _show up_ in the mirror. This had to be some kind of nightmare.

Regina eyed her balefully. "I was wondering when you would finally take that off."

"Why?" Emma angrily growled, as if she would willingly let Regina spy on her.

"We need to have a little chat," Regina quipped, her voice belittling.

A _chat_? Really? This woman was psychotic. But Emma was curious about why she even wanted to talk with her in the first place. Keep your friends close but enemies closer, right? "So let's chat," Emma begrudgingly hissed.

"I have a proposition for you," Regina announced with a condescending air, haughtily smirking, "and it would be best discussed in person."

"No way," Emma immediately spat back.

Regina shrugged noncommittally, suspiciously suggesting, "Think of it as diplomats meeting in peace,"

Emma scoffed scornfully. "Since when have our meetings ever been 'in peace'?" she implored dryly. The last 'meeting' they had had, Regina had tried to rip her heart out. Very peaceful.

"Since now," Regina hotly barked, before offhandedly relenting, "And it's not like you don't have the power to defend yourself. How have you been doing with magic lately?" she inquired curiously, a knowing smirk forming on her face.

"Fine," Emma muttered reluctantly and distastefully, unwilling to share any information with Regina about her magic.

"Remember, all magic comes with a price," Regina reminded her ominously, trying to bait her.

Sighing exasperatedly, Emma tried to get back to the point of this conversation. "What is this even about?" she heatedly demanded, the comment about magic coming with a price getting under her skin. Her magic was _inside_ of her. She was born with it and sometimes, she couldn't even control it. Was there really a price for that type of magic? If there was, figuring it out hadn't been a priority of hers lately.

"Show up here and you'll find out," Regina deliberately alluded, before snappily fading into a cloud of purple smoke. And Emma knew before she even disappeared completely from the mirror that her interest was officially piqued. Her mother was going to kill her.

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Surrounded by guards, Emma was led into a large sitting area where she assumed most of Regina's meetings took place. Whatever meetings she could possibly have, at least. Regina was dressed up in her usual style: a big, gaudy, dramatic dress and her slightly graying hair up in an extravagant up-do. She turned and gave Emma an unsympathetic and conniving smile at her approach. "Emma, how… nice to see you again," Regina said, slightly smug and with an undertone that said the complete opposite of her words.

"I wish I could say the same," Emma replied, her voice sharp. She was glaring daggers at the woman and it was taking all her strength to not try to attack her with magic right then and there. The Evil Queen who had done nothing but try to hurt her and who she had been planning to get some kind of payback on for years was standing right in front of her and she had no choice but to be civil. Even with her magic, Regina was more experienced and could still probably over power her and she was too curious for her own good. Emma really wanted to know what could Regina want so badly that she would actually seek her out. She had an inkling of an idea, but Emma hoped she was wrong. The whole reason Killian had knocked her out and left for six months was to make sure Regina about… whatever their complicated relationship was. There was no way she could know she had seen him since then, there was no guarantee that she had even seen them together that day at all.

Regina contemptuously smirked. "Care for a drink?" she asked politely, flourishing a hand toward a table with numerous bottles on it.

A drink that had a high chance of being poisoned? No thanks. Emma continued to stare her down, sternly asking, "What do you want?"

"Straight to the point then, I see," Regina answered briskly, her voice dragging with distaste. She put her hands behind her back and started to slowly pace in front of Emma, "I've recently come to the unfortunate conclusion that you are the key to getting something I want, more specifically," she added, her eyes lighting up conspiratorially, "something I want from someone."

"What are you talking about?" Emma tiredly implored. She already had enough theatrics and ambiguous speeches to deal with from Killian; she hated Regina too much to withstand it from her too.

With a maniacal grin, Regina divulged, "The dear Captain, of course."

Emma felt her stomach drop. Shit. She knew. How could she possible know? "What captain?" she unevenly asked, feigning indifference. This had to be trap. Maybe if she denied it, Regina would believe her.

"Ignorance isn't becoming on you," Regina pretentiously whispered, a knowing look in her eyes.

So there was no denying it. This had to be about the heart and Emma had never been more thankful that she had refused Killian's offers of telling her where it was. "I don't where he is," Emma spat coldly. She couldn't stop a twinge of bitterness from rising up in her voice, either, but she still would try to protect him.

"That's not my primary concern at the moment," Regina intoned dismissively, waving a hand.

Scoffing, Emma dubiously inquired, "Then what is your primary concern?"

"Let's start at the beginning, shall we?" Regina countered, more hostile than before, clearly frustrated at Emma's antics, "Unlike you originally thought, it wasn't George who hit you with that arrow, it was me."

Was she serious? It was _her_? "I'm sorry I survived," Emma indignantly sneered, still a bit disbelieving.

"You were always meant to survive," Regina sighed, rolling her eyes tiredly, "I did it as a test. Call it, curiosity," she added with a humorous glint.

"What exactly were you curious about?" Emma questioned, staring at her outrageously. If she wasn't suppose to die, then why the hell was it _poisoned_? There had clearly been at least some subconscious attempt to take her life.

"I wanted to see how the Captain would react to you almost dying," Regina gushed, her voice tauntingly sad and innocent.

Emma blinked in surprise. This was all some sort of sick experiment? And now she was indebted to Rumplestiltskin. And Killian's attempt at trying to protect her meant nothing. "So you saw us that day we got back from Neverland?" Emma begrudgingly asked, casting her a dark look.

"Is that where you were coming from?" Regina countered, her voice disinterested and callous, "I saw my hat in the background."

"He knocked me out and left me there," Emma debated incredulously, still thinking of the events that had transpired with the mirror revealed, "What makes you think-"

"But he looked so devastated after he did," Regina mockingly pouted, "And then he left, like you said, so I waited until I spotted him again in the Enchanted Forest to make my move and he didn't disappoint," she went on maliciously gleeful, "it didn't take him two days to get your castle. And then he so heroically saved you from falling off that cliff," casting her a look of detest, Regina vilely added, "unfortunately."

How the hell did she even know all of this? Emma had definitely underestimated Regina's power and drive. She was at a complete loss at out how to get out of this. She had no idea where Killian was, certainly no idea where her father's heart was, and if she did, there was no way she was ever going to share that Regina. And even if she had a way to get in touch with Killian, she doubted he would be willing to help her after all the spiteful things she had said to him down in Rumplestiltskin's cell. "I don't know what you think might have seen," Emma said cynically, attempting to convince her of her lack of knowledge on this matter, "but things between me and Hook are over."

"Really?" Regina stated, her voice dragging sardonically, obviously not buying it.

"Like I said," Emma went on, letting out a sigh of frustration, "I have no idea where he is right now and it's not like we ended on very good terms."

Regina let out a short, humorless laugh. "So that's why he's been moping about lately," she turned a gave Emma a wicked, teasing grin, "Not that he hasn't always been deliciously broody."

A sharp flash of annoyance rose up in Emma at hearing her call Killian 'delicious' because seriously? But she figured that wasn't the most important thing to be focusing on at the moment, so she figured it was best to let it go. The fact that Killian still was in the Enchanted Forest was the most important piece of information. "He's still in the Enchanted Forest?" Emma asked, trying not to seem as stunned as she was. Or that she really cared. She had figured he was off looking for some more portals again.

"Fortunately for me, he is," Regina zealously answered, clasping her hands in a very business like way, "and this is where my proposition comes in."

"What makes you think I would make any kind of deal with you?" Emma skeptically implored. Because there was no way in hell that she actually would. There was nothing in the world that would tempt her to take a deal from the woman who had tried to rip her heart.

"In a game of chess, you always save your most valuable pieces until the most opportune moment," Regina loftily lectured, a look in her eyes that was starting to make Emma nervous.

"Does it seem like I'm playing a game of chess?" Emma railed disbelievingly, fed up with the pace of the conversation. She was also starting to get extremely furious that she saw messing with peoples' lives as a game.

All of a sudden, Regina burst out laughing. Emma crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at her. Maybe being up in this castle really had turned her batty. "I'm sorry," Regina choked out between laughs, "if you only knew the déjà vu I was experiencing at the moment," with a final snicker, she continued on more seriously, "While you may be my bargaining chip for our dear Captain," Regina narrowed her eyes manipulatively at her, superciliously smirking, "I know exactly what yours is."

Regina snapped a finger, causing an image to project on the large, spiked mirror on the wall. Emma slowly walked over to it to get a closer look when her heart literally halted in her chest. Everything she thought she knew crumbled in an instant. It wasn't possible. A bronze-haired man that Emma knew too well was sitting in a cell, chained to a wall. Eyes wide and unable to breathe, Emma whispered, "Luke."

"When I was ripping your heart out," Regina casually commented, showing no remorse for her actions. She held up her thumb and forefinger together, "I may have fibbed just a little."

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A/N: So Luke has been locked up this entire time! A classic Regina move, in my opinion. But what does that mean for Emma, will she want to try to be reunited with him? Or are her feelings for Killian already too strong for her to even want to? Lots coming up! Luke is definitely the replacement for Neal in this story, since I don't think Emma and Neal would have ever met if the curse never happened, which only supports that Captain Swan is meant to be :) haha

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and please leave a review if you can!

Love you all! :)

**Next Chapter Summary**: After learning of Luke's captivity, Emma is left conflicted when Regina reveals exactly what she wants from her. Deals are struck and someone is tasked with a specific mission to Oz that leaves Emma wondering: can you really bring someone back from the dead?


	12. Chapter Eleven

FINALLY! This chapter was seriously so hard to write and I still have no idea why. There is just a lot of new dynamics introduced in it, I guess, and it is really long, but it all had to go in this chapter and all of it was too important to cut. I'll discuss more at the end :) Thank you so much for continuing to read this story! The support is really appreciated. Plus, remember to leave a review especially since I definitely pulled an all-nighter to get this out to you and accidently missed an online spanish quiz in the process so yay me! lol love you all and enjoy!

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**Chapter Eleven**

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"No. It's not possible," Emma whispered horrifically, still staring at the image on the mirror before her. Luke. Luke was here. She was frozen in shock, doing nothing but trying to comprehend reality. Everything she believed and thought she knew about the past three years crumbled around her. Him betraying her had changed her; she had vowed never to let anyone get close to her again and she had altered and formed her relationships accordingly to that truth. What did this mean for him? Had he been sitting in there, doing nothing but staring at a jail cell wall all this time? What did this mean for _her_? There was no way she would be able to revert back to the old Emma, the Emma he knew.

"Oh, it is," Regina quipped boastfully with a small smirk. She waved a hand at the mirror, mockingly sighing empathetically, "He's just been sitting here, rotting away, while you've been off adventuring with a one-handed swashbuckler."

Guilt jarringly started to replace her shock. Regina was right. Luke had been imprisoned here because she trusted Regina's words without question, completely believed that he had lied and played her and abandoned her for a bean. She should've known. It was all her fault. "For three years?" Emma questioned, her voice appalled and shaky, "Why?"

"Well, I was going to let him go after I killed you," Regina disinterestedly drawled, turning to give her a contemptuous, pointed look, "but look how that turned out."

"Why now?" Emma frustratingly stammered out, still feeling extremely overwhelmed at finally learning the truth and trying to contemplate what this might mean, how this would certainly change things. Luke's image faded from the mirror in a cloud of purple and she felt her stomach drop painfully, nausea rising up scratchily in her throat. She had to get him out of here. She had to do something to atone herself.

"Like I said, it would be _easier_ to get what I want with your cooperation," Regina said, still radiating smugness as she eyed Emma expectantly.

Reality hit her like a bucket of cold water. _Killian_. She knew exactly what Regina wanted. She couldn't betray him. But she couldn't just leave Luke stuck in that cell any longer either. Searing pain was constricting her lungs and she wanted nothing more than to pass out, disappear, just anything to remove this day from history and let the world take care of itself. It was an impossible decision she couldn't make. She looked up at Regina, anger and disgust coursing through her. She had never felt such a burning hatred for anyone. Regina's words played through her head and Emma realized that no matter if she didn't agree to her proposition, she would be forced to go along with whatever she had planned, anyway. Curiosity killed the cat. And now she knew she was going to be stuck here. Sick of dancing around the subject, Emma leveled with her, doing her best to stay numb of emotions and tiredly spat, "You want me to get your father's heart from Hook."

"Clever girl," Regina countered amusedly, tauntingly grinning. Emma already knew she wouldn't do it, that heart was the only thing stopping Regina from killing Killian. Regina would have to kill her first. She would just have to find a way to get Luke out before that happened. "Somebody looks conflicted," Regina said teasingly, breaking Emma from her thoughts. A quick look of doubt covered Regina's face before she quickly covered it up. The former queen studied her curiously, "Who does your heart really belong to, princess?"

Emma balled her fists, trying to contain the magic that was threatening to burst from her fingertips due to the unbridled emotion that was flowing through her. She couldn't attack Regina. Not yet. "I don't know where it is," Emma snapped acidly, her nostrils flaring involuntarily as she decided to ignore Regina's inquiry entirely.

"I didn't think so," Regina replied, calm as ever, as she picked up a silver goblet and took a sip.

"So what then?" Emma asked, blinking and shaking her head in confusion, thrown off guard from Regina's lack of response. If she didn't know where the heart was, what else could she possibly want from her? It's not like she could just go and get it from him either without out some sort of explanation as to why she wanted it. Realization of Regina's plan suddenly dawned on her. Emma's eyes widened outrageously, incredulously guessing, "You think he'll exchange the heart for me?"

Regina waved a finger in the air in enthused confirmation, jeering, "That's the plan."

"You really are crazy," Emma told her, staring her down preposterously. No, he was smarter than that. That was the only thing stopping the curse from happening, it was the only thing keeping him alive, "There's no way."

"I beg to differ," Regina scornfully gibed, rolling her eyes slightly, "And then once he does, I'll let your prince go," she said as if the decision would be that easy, "So what do you say?"

Emma felt rather than heard the guards that slowly started to creep up behind her. She wasn't sure if she could fight them all off and Regina at the same time, but it didn't matter, she had to get Luke out before she did anything else. So if getting thrown in a cell was the only way for her to finally try to go find him in this place, then so be it. "Do I have a choice? I'm already here," Emma hissed balefully, "You're going to lock me up no matter what I say."

"No," Regina said, satisfaction washing over her features. She shrugged nonchalantly and then snapped her finger at the guards, "I guess you don't."

"Hook won't come," Emma retorted insolently to Regina as the guards grabbed her arms and attempted to drag her away. That heart was what was buying him time to complete his vengeance, something Emma already knew was more important to him than his life. He wouldn't risk it. And a part of her didn't want him to come. She was already the reason Luke had been trapped here for _three_ years. He could never get those years back. She didn't want to have the guilt of taking something away from Killian too. This was her mess and after everything they had already been through, surely he knew she could get herself out of this. She just had to figure out how first. "Even if he does care about me, he cares about his revenge more."

"We'll see about that," she heard Regina arrogantly call as she continued to taken a cell, fighting the protest and objection that was rising up in her. She was never one to 'go quietly' and it felt like it was going against her very nature to let the guards lock her up, even though she knew it was necessary. She couldn't wait to get out of here. Emma was thrown in a blue-lit room, more spacious than she imagined. She was soon shackled to the cot that resided in there, though, so she really didn't understand the point of having all that room for nothing if she couldn't even move.

She waited awhile, giving the time for the guards to make it back to their stations and believe she would stay put, before using her magic to unlock the chains around her ankles and wrists. Emma crept over to the door and peaked out through the tiny, barred opening near the top, seeing only one guard standing out there. She hesitantly checked the door before attempting to knock it open and was surprised to see Regina hadn't tried to spell it or curse it. Deciding to not read too much into it, Emma blasted the door open, trying to use as little force as possible to not cause too much attention to her escape attempt.

Her guard immediately spun around at the disruption and Emma knocked him out before he could properly react. Her heart pounding, Emma darted through the castle, attempting to avoid detection from anyone else. If Regina had stuck her in the main tower cell, she must have moved Luke somewhere temporarily. She tried to think of where she or her parents would move a prisoner if a more important one had come in, excluding Rumplestiltskin's cell. Even though her dad had outrageously locked Killian in there. She suppressed an eye roll at the memory and forced herself to focus on the task at hand. Areas of the castle flipped through her head; thinking of the lower floors and how they had no windows and usually one, heavy door, Emma quietly sprinted her way down there. Near the kitchens, she saw a door with chains on it and didn't try to hide the smirk she was wearing knowing she had found it.

Emma opened up the door and instinctively froze, feeling like she was seeing a haunting ghost from her past; but no, the familiar, bronze haired man tied to the wall in front of her did not betray and instead needed her help. That's what she kept having to pound into her head. Luke looked up when he heard someone come in and went pale. "Emma?" he whispered stunned and awestruck.

It was surreal seeing him standing before her, almost like a dream. In the beginning, _not_ seeing him had felt like a dream. Everything was so different now. The vision of him left a stinging in her chest, even though she knew now him betraying her had been a lie. His memory and hurt had been coupled for perhaps too long. She couldn't let herself get distracted now, though. Emma tried to swallow all questions and apologies that were threatening to spill from her mouth as she raised a shaky finger to her lips, "Shh," she whispered, shushing him as she strode over to him and aimed her hands at his shackles, "I'm going to get you out of here."

"How are you doing that?" Luke asked, looking down as she blasted his chains away with her magic, astonishment on his face.

Emma momentarily paused. She was so used to her magic now that it was weird to remember there had been a time when she hadn't been aware of it. Realizing there was so easy or short way to explain it to him, Emma dismissively settled on, "Long story."

"I knew you'd find me," Luke beamed as he stood up.

His face was filled so much affection and hope; Emma's heart immediately plummeted torturously with guilt, knowing she was about to make it look the exact opposite of that. She couldn't lie to him. "I didn't," Emma miserably admitted, her voice turning hoarse.

Confusion colored his eyes as he glanced about the room. "What are you talking about?" Luke implored, his voice filled with a certain expectancy now as he saw her features contorted in pain.

It was taking all her strength to keep looking him in the eyes. Emma desperately tried to explain, "She told me you gave me up to her for a magic bean."

"And you believed her?" Luke's disappointed and callous voice came out as more of statement than question. As the idea settled within him, he outrageously asked, "Then how are you even here?"

"There's not enough time for me to explain everything right now," Emma hurriedly debated, "we need to get out of here first-"

Blinding pain suddenly shot into her shoulder, forcing her to the ground with an audible, stunned gasp. Emma could hear Regina's loud and annoying voice, "You're not getting out of here until I say you're getting out of here." Okay, that was it. Emma was ready to take her down. Blinking her watery vision back into focus, Emma swiped her leg out and tried to kick over the guard that had basically tried to impale her shoulder with the handle of his sword. That was going to leave a huge bruise and the dress she had been planning to wear on her birthday was strapless. She stumbled to her feet and turned to face Regina, garnering the strength to fight her with all the magic she could summon. Emma was slightly taken aback when Regina started laughing. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," Regina quipped belittling, indicating that she should turn around. Emma looked back and saw at least a half-a-dozen guards surrounding Luke, one with their sword held up threateningly to his throat. If she attacked Regina now, they would automatically kill him and she couldn't fight all of them and Regina off at the same time, not while she had magic too. Resigned, Emma bitterly shrugged her shoulders, indicating to Regina that she was giving in. For now, at least. "Take her back to her cell," Regina looked her dead in the eyes, viscously threatening, "and if you try any more escape attempts, his heart will be gone before you can blink."

Emma venomously glared at her as the guards dragged her away once more, knowing that she wasn't lying. That had been her one chance to get Luke out. Now, Regina would be watching him around the clock. And she wouldn't leave him here to die. Everything was turning into a disaster.

Once she was back in her cell, Emma slumped against the wall, letting the hours pass and not bothering to keep track of them. It had been at least a day, if not more, since they had brought her food. She didn't eat it, though, losing her appetite at seeing the apple Regina had no doubt placed on there in humor just to spite her. She wondered what Killian was doing and if he knew she was here. If he were smart and stayed away, like she thought he would, how long would Regina keep her here? Assuming he even cared she was here in the first place. It had been two months since she had seen him and he could still very well be mad at her, not that she didn't deserve it. Emma sank further into despondence thinking about him. It wouldn't be long before her parents noticed she was missing, either. Would they figure out where she had gone? She cursed herself for not leaving some kind of a hint. Emma wished she could sleep; she just wanted to feel numb for a while. Luke was probably sitting in that room hating her existence now.

The door of her cell started to jiggle with movement and Emma defensively sat up straighter. The figure that popped its head through the door left her breathless. "Hey beautiful," Killian greeted, winking at her.

Her heart clenched at the sight of him, just now realizing how much she had missed him. She tried not feel glad that he was here, that he cared enough to come, but she couldn't help it. It pulled at something deep inside her she didn't want to have address yet. Especially since him being here was not good; she wouldn't let him give Regina her father's heart back and she couldn't leave Luke her either. "What are you doing here?" Emma asked, her voice chiding and frustrated.

He quietly closed the door and strode over to her, exasperatedly rolling his eyes. "You really didn't think I would come for you?" Killian replied with a tired sigh, a twinge of annoyance lacing his voice.

"Because I thought you would be smart enough not to," Emma half-heartedly reprimanded, her voice softening to let him know she did appreciate it. "You have to leave," she continued quickly as he knelt down in front of her to break her free of her chains, "Regina is setting you up."

"I'm still going to get you out of here," Killian told her determinately, turning serious. She caught a flash of blood on his hook as he used it to undo the locks. Well that was great. He looked back up at her with some amusement, "Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't tried to escape already."

Killian grabbed the top of her left arm, helping her up once she was free. She involuntarily winced as he pulled on her bruised shoulder. "I have tried," Emma muttered objectively, giving him a pointed look toward her injury. Concern flashed through his eyes and he attempted to turn her to get a better look at it. "It's fine," she assured him wearily, flinching her shoulder away from him. She was nervous on how to tell him about Luke, not sure how he was going to react. "I can't leave," Emma claimed anxiously.

"Yes," Killian countered, his eyes flashing with perplexity and a hint of irritation. He moved his hand to the small of her back instead of tugging on her arm again to get her to move, "you can."

"Luke's here," Emma desolately confessed, clutching onto his arm to get him to stop moving. She had never told him Luke's name but she could tell he knew who she was talking about from the tone in her voice, silently communicating with him through her eyes as well, "Regina's had him this entire time."

Shock was quickly written all over his face. He furrowed his brows and opened his mouth to say something before his left arm was forcibly whipped around, spinning him to face the door. Emma hurriedly looked past him and saw Regina standing there holding Killian's hook with a smug smile on her face. "Really?" Killian exasperatedly sighed, rage simmering just beneath the surface, "Again?"

"How sweet," Regina scathingly jeered, ignoring whatever reference to the past Killian had been referring to. A forced smile formed on her face as she looked between the two of them, "Your blonde princess was convinced you wouldn't come." Emma had to suppress an eye roll at Regina's condescending comment that had been directed at her rather than him.

Regina flourished a hand toward the open door, snidely suggesting, "Let's adjourn to sitting area, shall we?"

Killian turned back to look at her, a look of relented understanding passing between them, that they really had no choice on the matter. Emma tiredly sighed, following Regina out the door, and was surprised when Killian grabbed her hand, but was more surprised to find she wasn't objecting. They eventually made their way to the room where Emma had originally been brought in and spotted Luke sitting on the couch in there, flanked and being watched by two guards, feeling relieved when he didn't immediately start staring hateful daggers at her.

"Emma," Luke said, breathing a sigh of relief as he stood up to walk over to her, "You're okay. I wasn't sure when they dragged you off-"

The second Luke touched her arm, Killian's hand left hers and was pounded into Luke's face. "Are you insane?" Emma frenetically screeched with wide eyes.

Luke stumbled only a few steps backwards, his hands automatically grasping his nose. He furiously glared at Killian. "Who the hell are you?" Luke fumingly snarled, starting to charge toward Killian in defense.

Emma reflexively tried to jump in between them. This was ridiculous. "Gentlemen," Regina severely bellowed, causing the two men to freeze. Emma begrudgingly sent her a gratified look. Rolling her eyes, she continued, "there are more important matters at hand than whatever the appeal of this woman is."

On second thought, she was definitely withdrawing her gratitude. Emma turned to cast Killian a dark look, who stood there feigning innocence like nothing had just happened, before inspecting Luke's now bleeding nose. "Are you okay?" she inquired quietly.

"Yeah," Luke quickly whispered, the scene in front of them demanding their attention.

Regina was slowly narrowing in on Killian. "I think you know why I really summoned you here, Captain," she said tartly, bitterly spitting her address of him. Reflexes now on high alert to their situation, Emma moved to stand beside him.

"Not particularly, no, why?" Killian replied easily, nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders. He smoothly shifted his stance to where he was standing slightly in front of her again, a move that seemed natural but Emma knew better. She wasn't really seeing the point of him acting protective when she was the only one who could successfully fight Regina off, if it came to that.

Staring at him affronted, Regina outrageously spat, "My father's heart."

"What about it?" Killian asked, continuing to guilelessly probe. Emma was sure her warning stare was burning holes in the side of his face, but he was still refusing to look at her. She still wasn't sure why he decided to go with the whole ignorance act since it was doing nothing but provoking Regina even more.

"I want it back," Regina articulated in a fuming, clipped tone. Emma did her best to stealthily look Killian over and then around for some sort of satchel, but didn't see anything.

Killian rubbed his chin with his hand, a relaxed smile on his face as his fingers waved in accord, "I don't happen to have it on me today."

Regina eyed him with raging disbelief. "What?"

"I left it somewhere, awhile ago actually," Killian admitted, mockingly faking remorse before turning more threatening, "and it really wasn't on the forefront of my mind when you told me you had Emma."

Regina stiffened in rage, glaring daggers at the man in front of her. "Where is it?" she demanded acidly.

"That is a very good question," Killian unflinchingly moved toward her. A bubble of anxiety started to form Emma's abdomen. Was he trying to be intimidating or something? He always had to be so goddamn theatrical. His voice lowered dangerously, "one I won't be answering."

Regina's hand suddenly plunged into Killian's chest. His head was thrown back as he released a strangled cry of pain. "No," Emma impulsively gasped, absolutely horrified at what was unfolding. Her entire turned icy from the panic exploding inside of her. It was almost like she could feel the severe, synching pain he was experiencing in her chest as well. Her fingertips automatically started twitching, wanting to blast Regina into oblivion and away from him, but how could she be sure she wouldn't take his heart with her in the process? She had to think of something else, but her heart was pounding so profoundly, she couldn't think straight. Emma frantically screamed, "Stop it!"

A satisfied smile on her face, Regina maliciously challenged, "Why should I?"

Her body still seizing up in terror, Emma forcibly fumbled through her thoughts, trying to think of something, anything, that would entice Regina enough to forget about the heart, at least for now. She hated Killian for taking her father's heart and stopping the curse, but that wasn't the only time he double-crossed her. Maybe the chance at righting one of his wrongs would give him enough of an opportunity to get out of the Enchanted Forest or just get as far away from Regina as possible. She could only think of one thing Regina might possibly go for. Emma took one more quick glance at Killian, but the moment they made eye contact, she knew that had been a mistake. He had always been too much of an open book to him and he somehow sensed where her thoughts where going.

"Emma, don't," Killian grunted through a clenched jaw, his voice strained and breathless.

Emma ignored him and determinately kept her attention on Regina, tensely declaring, "I'll go to Wonderland and kill Cora."

Regina froze, obviously affected by what she had suggested, but it was quickly replaced by her malignant poker face. "You're just bringing up more grievances I have against him," she vengefully spat, squeezing his heart harder.

Hearing Killian's sharp intake of breath and hiss of pain, Emma's control almost came undone. "Stop!" she demandingly bellowed, the inside of her fists already glowing bright.

Glancing down at Emma's hands, hesitancy flickered in Regina's eyes. She became blank-faced, seeming to be reluctantly contemplating the offer. "Why would that interest me?" Regina cautiously inquired after a moment, her lips pursing.

"You wanted him to do it before," Emma said, desperately stumbling out any argument she could think of, "and who better to try again than the one person who can't get her heart ripped out? That is her thing, isn't it?" she eagerly added, the idea strengthening in her head, "it'll catch her off guard."

"What makes you think I still want her dead?" Regina testily pointed out.

"You still do," Emma answered confidently after taking a moment to study her. She hoped to God she was right and not just seeing what she wanted to see because she wanted it to be true so Regina would agree. Trying to appeal to more of Regina's vendettas, Emma decided to throw herself into the mix, "Besides, it's an easy way for you to finally get rid of me." The more she thought about it, Regina _would_ probably try to destroy the hat the moment she went through it.

"Cora's heart isn't there," Killian hoarsely spoke up, annoyingly counteracting her argument between labored breaths, "She ripped it out herself and has it hidden somewhere. She won't be able to kill her."

"I'll find it," Emma hastily interjected, grinding her teeth together. She fought the urge to send a hostile, outrageous glare at him. What the hell did he think he was doing? She was trying to save him. "I'll do it if you let them go," she decisively added, nodding her head toward Killian and Luke.

"I have something even better to offer," Killian defiantly panted.

Regina eyes turned cold again as she retightened the grip on his heart that had begun to loosen, sternly repeating, "All I want from you is my father's heart."

"I am completely lost right now," Luke quietly quipped, mumbling from behind them. Emma couldn't blame him. He deserved to be back with his family, this wasn't his fight at all.

"When I left Cora in Wonderland, I had to find a second person to come back with," Killian continued, still struggling against the clear agony of Regina's hand in his chest, a fierce determination about him, "the man said he knew you… Jefferson, was his name I believe, do you remember him?" he asked as tauntingly as he could manage.

Emma had no idea who this man was and Killian had never mentioned him, but his name was enough for Regina remove her hand from his chest, heart-free. The relief that sagged through Emma was almost painful and her lungs regained the ability to breathe, even though she was now confused as hell. Killian tumbled to the ground, a groan and gasps for air escaping him. Emma instantly dropped down beside him, concernedly seeing if he really was okay. His jaw was tight and his breathing still somewhat shallow as glared furiously up at Regina. The raging Hook she had only seen a few, brief times was definitely back. Killian's right arm wrapped around her shoulder and she helped him to his feet, knowing he wouldn't want to stay on the ground. As they stood, she still was supporting most of his weight, causing her shoulder to burn in protest, but she didn't care. At least in this position, she would be able to stop Regina if she tried to touch him again, who at the moment had turned her back to them. "I'm listening," Regina impatiently hissed, addressing him over her shoulder.

"Yes, well, we talked all about you," Killian divulged, his voice dragging reproachfully, "and he mentioned a man... a man you had _tried_ to restore back to life."

Emma snapped her head up to look at him, eyes wide, stunned and understanding. "The boy Cora killed?" she hastily whispered to him. No, dead was dead, right? There was no possible way to bring back the dead.

His eyes stayed trained on Regina, though, who visibly stiffened and sharply whipped around, her eyes and voice as cold as ice. "There had better be a point to this," she growled threateningly.

Killian pretended to be affronted by her accusing tone before he indifferently shrugged with his free shoulder, impassively saying, "I just thought you might want to know that Rumplestiltskin had orchestrated the entire thing to make you believe it couldn't be done."

"What?" Regina wildly snarled. Emma was a little taken aback by the woman's reaction. It was the first time she had ever seen something real and very powerful emotionally in her eyes, and dare she might say, potent grief. For a second, she wasn't the Evil Queen anymore, she was just… Regina.

"Oh, yes," Killian replied casually. He looked down at Emma, a wicked smirk forming on his lips, "very bad form."

She couldn't believe that at a moment like this, she was having to bite the inside of her cheek to stifle a laugh. Her amusement rapidly faded, though, as his words sunk in. Emma eye's darted between the two, wrapping her head around the idea. "Are you serious?" she incredulously implored. Did that mean it _could_ be done? And how, what about the body? She had a million questions but she was confident that she probably wasn't going to get a lot of answers from them right now, even if she asked, since it both looked like they had full knowledge of the situation and both of them weren't exactly keen on sharing information most of the time.

"Being a man of many travels," Killian continued with a hint of arrogance and Emma could already feel the dramatics coming, "I happened upon Oz and in Oz, there is a legend about a powder." Emma skeptically raised an eyebrow at him to which he patronizingly answered, "It's said to be the thing that brings all of the… _heartless,_" Killian emphasized with a pointed look toward Regina, who looked consumed in his tale, "objects in the land to life. I've seen the china people and an army of wooden soldiers myself." He finally removed the arm that had been wrapped around her shoulder with a heaving sigh. Emma glanced to her right to check on Luke and saw that he had been watching her and Killian. A blush crept up on her cheeks, suddenly feeling guilty for no reason. Killian flourished his hand, dismissively saying, "It's a very long and complicated legend but I'm guessing you get the gist of it. I'll travel there and obtain it for you," he loftily offered.

So he was just going back to Oz now? Emma crossed her arms, not sure how she felt about all of this. She was feeling responsible for him volunteering to do this because she had caused the mess by stupidly coming here in the first place. And she still wasn't convinced that this powder would really work, and if didn't, Regina would definitely kill him without any more hesitation, since it was obvious she was coming more fixated by the idea every passing second. That is, if he could even get the powder. A powder like that had to be dangerous and hard to obtain in the first place. Emma was definitely starting to decide she didn't like this. Regina cleared her throat, regaining control over her composure. "And what of my father's heart?" she queried suspiciously.

"It's either one or the other," Killian advised disdainfully.

Clearly irritated, but resigned nonetheless, Regina knowingly asked, "And what do you want in return for the powder?"

"Let us go now," Killian coolly directed, "and once I bring the powder back, leave Emma and her family alone for good."

What? No, she wouldn't let him ask for that. Emma opened her mouth to protest but Killian shot her such a dark look, her mouth clamped shut on its own accord.

"_Us_ go?" Regina bemusedly reiterated, staring down Killian with slight disbelief.

"I do need the hat to travel and as you can see, it's not me," Killian pointed up to his head, smugly milking in his bargaining, "and for a journey such as this, I need to make preparations. Finding the powder won't exactly be easy."

Regina was seething rolling her lips together and Emma knew she was probably hating the fact that Killian was holding all the power in this deal. "You have a week," she begrudgingly hissed, silently agreeing with Killian's conditions apparently.

"Two," Killian firmly declared, his resolve unflinching.

Regina paused briefly before taking out Killian's hook she had taken and started to spell it with something. "What the hell did you just do?" Emma furiously demanded.

"I placed a tracking spell on it so that I can find you the second your two weeks is up," Regina digressed contemptuously, her eyes flashing with warning as she locked his hook back on, "And if you try to leave the realm with it on, you'll die. My way to personally guarantee that you don't run off to your precious Neverland the moment you leave here."

"Fantastic," Killian dryly muttered.

.

.

* * *

.

.

Once Regina had finally let them leave, the walk down and out of the castle had been one of the weirdest of her entire life. Never once had she ever imagined a scenario like this happening. Emma had remained silent, not sure what to say to Killian or Luke, who were on either side of her. She was beginning to feel dizzy as she began to comprehend everything that had happened now that they were out of Regina's clutches. Luke was back, after three years of thinking she would never see him again, and Killian was apparently Oz bound. She had never been one for sudden change and it was beginning to get overwhelming. One of the guards met them outside, handing over her horse that she had ridden there on, quickly leaving the three of them to keep standing there a bit awkwardly. Luke still seemed to be taking in his surroundings, his face completely neutral and unreadable, leaving Emma impervious to his thoughts. "I can't even comprehend what you must feeling right now," she fretted, hopelessly wishing she could somehow give him the past three years of his life back to him.

"I'll be fine," Luke told her evenly, his graciousness making her feel even worse, and it wasn't helping that she could feel Killian watching her like a hawk. He nodded back toward the castle, musing, "I'm just still trying to wrap my head around what happened in there."

Emma anxiously bit her lip and then attempted to direct her horse toward him. She had to stop freaking out. This was _Luke_. She had known him almost her entire life and there had been a time he had known her better than anyone else, but at the moment, he still felt like a complete stranger to her. "Take my horse and go home," she energetically offered. His parents had been so devastated when they thought he had left, and they still were, and Caroline, oh God Emma didn't even want to think about how Caroline was going to react, especially since they just had that argument about his days ago, "Your family is going to go crazy."

Luke gave her a thankful nod but then hesitated, skeptically asking, "What about you?"

"I'll walk," Emma quickly replied, waving her hand dismissively and doing her best to sound somewhat cheery, "I'm suppose to be at Red's anyway. That's closer, I'll go there."

"After everything that's happened, I'm not going to let you walk to Red's by yourself."

Emma couldn't help but dryly state, "I'll be fine."

"And she won't be by herself," Killian unabashedly asserted and Emma was inwardly glad to hear his confirmation because she still really wanted to talk to him. She also found herself wanting to snicker at him since he somehow interpreted Luke's sentence into an accusation of his 'honor' and seemed genuinely displeased about it. Oh yes, _always the gentlemen_.

Eyeing Killian balefully, taking in his black leather outfit, earring, and rimmed eyes, Luke pointed a finger at him, coolly contending, "I never got your name."

"Hook."

"Right," Luke deadpanned.

"Luke, seriously, it's fine," Emma hurriedly interjected, wanting to avoid any more thrown, undeserved punches, "don't feel obligated to do anything."

"Red's is on the way," Luke keenly reminded her, "it's no big deal."

Okay, so it seemed there was no talking him out of this. She tried not to panic. To be fair, she glanced over at Killian, unsurely saying, "If you need to go make preparations, or whatever-"

"No," Killian replied casually, turning to give Luke a pointed look before repeating his words, "it's no big deal."

Emma stared at him disbelievingly. Was that necessary? He was basically a newly released POW, and she wasn't sure if he was mad, sad, happy, or anything, now was not the time for sass. She frustratingly threw her arms out, motioning for Luke to lead the way. Killian moved to follow him, but Emma angrily snatched his sleeve, halting him. When Luke was out of earshot, Emma furiously ordered to Killian in a whisper, "Stop."

"Stop what, darling?" Killian repeated with perfect guile, flashing her a sarcastic yet challenging smile before tearing his shirt out of her grip and trailing past her, leaving her blood boiling. Emma took a deep breath, collecting herself. She couldn't start sparring with Killian in front of Luke, not when he was probably feeling even more overwhelmed than her and probably had a million questions, and she was ready and willing to answer them. She was determined to do her best to make sure he was fully informed about whatever he would want to know before he went back to his kingdom, and she would throttle Killian if he started provoking Luke again just to get a rise out of her.

But Luke never started asking any questions and instead continued to remain stoically silent. It was doing nothing but unnerving her further and caused her to be awkwardly speechless as well, while they both had to listen to Killian elaborate, mainly to her, on all the many reasons why he had never been fond of horses. After another stretch of silence, Emma attempted another conversation starter, awkwardly beginning, "Do you have anything you want to ask about or talk about?" Emma implored, looking over at him earnestly, "It's been…" she couldn't bring herself to say three years out loud to him yet, "You must have a million questions."

"Maybe once it finally hits me that this isn't a dream and that I'm out I will," Luke mechanically replied, giving a small shrug of his shoulders.

More silence. This was beginning to get really difficult. "I saw Caroline a couple of days ago," Emma added, searching her brain for anything and going with the first thing she thought of, "she's married now."

"She'd been planning her wedding since she could talk," Luke replied more openly, a small smile forming on his lips as he shook his head, "I bet it was something else."

"I wouldn't know," Emma reluctantly mumbled. Maybe not talking had been better, but Caroline was probably going to start ranting against her the moment he got back home anyway, so when Luke shot her a confused look, she sedately confessed, "I wasn't invited."

Luke scoffed slightly, his voice filled with ludicrous, "You're joking."

"She never believed Regina's story," Emma solemnly answered.

His answer was just a curt, understanding nod of his head. Trying to lighten the mood, Luke waved a finger between her and Killian, curiously asking, "So how did you two meet?"

That was seriously going to be the first question he asked on his own accord? And what was she suppose to say, he tracked down Alexandria and then attacked us in an alleyway because he is crazily obsessed with Rumplestiltskin? "It's complicated," Emma concurred sheepishly.

"Not really," Killian bemusedly argued, speaking up after having remained uncharacteristically silent through her entire prior conversation with Luke.

"Fine," Emma said shortly, sending him a sickly sweet smile, wondering what story he would end up telling so he didn't sound like a creepy, pirate stalker, "Then you tell him."

"You see, I followed her and the other blonde princess…"

Okay, so he _was_ going to go there. Killian stared at Emma expectantly. She exasperatedly snapped, "You know her name."

"Yeah but it's more fun to have you tell it with me," Killian tauntingly intoned.

Emma gazed over at him, trying to scream 'who are you' with her eyes. Did he have to do this now? And something was just off about the way he was acting. "Alexandria," she professed, her voice flat.

"You followed them?" Luke skeptically probed.

"To this dirty old pub, actually. Drinks like a fish, this one," Killian colorfully raved. Emma couldn't help but feel slightly affronted since that had been one of her favorite hideouts until that little incident with him and she didn't even get to finish her one drink that night. "I pretended to be a simple man, hoping to lure them into a false sense of security, if you will, so I could later interrogate them for…" Killian paused slightly, cautiously keeping the Rumplestiltskin talk out of the story, "certain information, but-"

"I saw right through him and smashed a bottle over his head," Emma sharply interjected, finishing the story for him since he was already taking it too far. She was unable to stop some boastfulness from entering her voice, though.

"That you did, lass," Killian murmured in a tone Emma couldn't quite place. She sent him a quizzical glance, but he seemed preoccupied with his hook. Much to her gratefulness, they soon made it to Red's property. When Emma spotted the house, she pushed her horse toward Luke, gently commanding, "Take her and go, Luke."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Emma said resolutely, handing him the reigns.

"I'll bring her back to you in a couple of days," Luke said as he lifted himself up onto the saddle. Emma saw the first signs of uneasiness beginning to form on his face. "We can talk then," he honestly avowed. She nodded at him in agreement and after taking one more quick glance between her and Killian, he started his journey back toward his kingdom. Their prince was back and all of this was starting to seem like the calm before the storm.

"Well," Killian lazily commented as Luke disappeared into the distance, "this day has certainly been full of surprises."

She wasn't sure what possessed her, but Emma crushed herself into Killian's chest and tightly wrapped her arms around him. She could tell he was startled, but his arms soon embraced her as well. There was too much change coming and she guessed she just needed to hold onto something she felt was constant and he was it. And with her ear pressed against his chest, there was something relaxing in hearing the sound of his heart beating after almost watching it get ripped out. She wasn't sure how long they stood there, his hand tracing circles on her back, before Killian concernedly murmured into her hair, "You okay, love?"

Emma eyes snapped open. Seriously, what was she doing? She couldn't just latch herself onto him like that. Oh God, when had she become so sappy and desperate? And it wasn't like he seemed like the hugging type. "Yeah," Emma dismissively mumbled, stepping away from him and crossing her arms, feeling a little embarrassed. Everything with him left her feeling like an emotional yo-yo and it was starting to drive her crazy. She wasn't sure if it was because he constantly sucked her in against her will or if she was going against her will by constantly fighting him.

Killian reached out, touching her arm. "Emma, it's fine-"

"I'm just a little overwhelmed right now," Emma said, snapping at him without meaning to. He immediately backed off. These two worlds that were never suppose to meet had now suddenly collided and it left her at a complete loss. Did it have to change who she was now, was it supposed to? The truth that had defined her for so long had suddenly become a lie, even if it still didn't feel like one.

"Understandable," Killian quietly replied, his voice full of resignation as he looked her over and Emma suddenly felt too exposed.

Wanting to divert all attention away from herself, Emma waved her hand in the direction Luke had gone, frustratingly sighing, "And did you really have to keep making fun of him like that?"

"I wasn't making _fun_ of him-"

"Yes you were," Emma heatedly debated, her tone turning accusing, "You were purposively trying to provoke him. Seriously, what was that?"

Killian looked taken aback at her outburst and pointed a finger at her, quarrelsomely countering, "You were the one putting on a front."

"What?" Emma objectively gasped.

"With all that cheery little small talk," Killian acrimoniously jeered, stepping closer to her, "Do you honestly expect me to believe that you're feeling just grand about everything?"

"Of course I'm not! But what else was I supposed to do?" Emma desperately cried. Everything she had been trying to hold in and ignore was suddenly starting to spill out of her now that they were alone, feeling like she could finally breathe again, "Regina had him for three years. Because of _me_," she painfully confided, "I'm surprised he could even look at me. I never once doubted Regina's story, but everyone else did," Emma bitterly ranted, "His sister has _hated_ me this entire time because she never thought it was true and I-"

"Emma, it's okay," Killian chanted intently, slowly reaching toward her. He looked a little cautious of her now, which only made her freak out even more. She briefly wondered if it was because he was aware she could start spewing out magic at any second.

"Once everything sinks in, he's going to hate me," Emma continued, whispering shakily as she took deep breaths to make sure her damn emotional fueled power stayed in check, "I'm a terrible person."

She guessed it really had been the magic that was worrying him since he had no qualms no about tightly gripping her arm. "No you're not," Killian told her, fierce and determined, "Don't try to blame yourself for this." But how could she not? If the curse had happened and she had ended up being 'the savior', they all would have screwed. Feeling defeated, Emma covered her face with her hands, tiredly sighing. "Don't do that," Killian softly commanded, moving her hands away and forcing her to look at him, "There was no way you could know."

Looking up into seas of sparkling blue, she believed him, and then it hit her that she should have just listened to him back in Rumplestiltskin's cell because he had been right, he was the one person she trusted to be there for her. But now he was leaving and she couldn't blame anyone but herself because she had made another stupid mistake by going to Regina's and he had some sort of gentlemen complex. She pushed an accusing finger into his chest, "And _you_-"

"Me?" he indignantly reiterated, pulling back from her and furrowing his eyebrows.

"-Agreeing to go get that stupid powder," Emma incredulously spit out, she should be the one having to leave, not him, "in _Oz_. You shouldn't have even showed up there."

"There was no way I was _not_ going to show up to get you," Killian spat, incensed, his voice low and dangerous as his eyes turned dark and stormy, "and I volunteered to go get the powder because the only way you're ever going to Wonderland, is over my dead body."

"Regina had her hand in your chest," Emma vehemently growled, "it almost _was_ over your dead body."

"How did Regina manage to capture you in the first place?" Killian implored dubiously, irately stating, "I know you're strong enough to fight her off."

Damn it, she had been hoping he wouldn't eventually ask her about that. After a struggling moment, Emma begrudgingly confessed, "She didn't _capture_ me…"

Realization washed over his face, and he gaped disbelievingly at her, turning his back on her in anger. "For the love of…" he furiously trailed off, before whipping back around and dementedly barking, "bloody hell, Emma, are you insane?"

"She showed up in my mirror and said she had a proposition for me," Emma fierily clamored, trying to vindicate herself, "I was curious."

Killian glowered at her, outrage in his eyes, and it was like something in him suddenly snapped. Emma reflexively took a small step backward as he strode closer to her, lowly snarling, "You were _curious_?"

Emma gazed up at him, not quite sure what to do. "You're overreacting," she sputtered nervously.

"With good reason," Killian wrathfully roared, "Your life is already in danger enough as it is without you willingly putting yourself in it every fucking chance you get!"

Emma was frozen in shock. Shit, he was absolutely _livid_. It was the first time she had ever become scared by one of his reactions and it subdued her enormously. She was beginning to see it had been building up all day, too, sitting there contained beneath the surface even when he had first walked into that cell to break her out. He hadn't been acting weird earlier because he was trying to provoke Luke, he was mad at _her_. Not just their usual mad, either, it was a mad that made Emma fearful. "I'm sorry," she quietly apologized, her voice somber and sedate. They both stood there in silence, her waiting for him to calm down and him unable to look at her until he did. When he finally did acknowledge her presence again, Emma absentmindedly jabbered, "I didn't know you were even still in the Enchanted Forest."

"Where else would I be?" Killian tempestuously snapped, making Emma flinch. A flash of regret ran through his eyes and he continued on more resigned and calmer, "I can't go home. My ship is in Neverland and I'm not going back there without you." When Emma shot him an inquisitive look, he bemusedly added, "Who else is going to stop Vidia from killing me?"

"Right," Emma muttered under her breath, trying not to feel too stung, "That's what you should have asked for from Regina," she added remorsefully, feeling even worse now that he used it on her family if he really did miss Neverland and his ship that much, "A way to get your ship here."

He shrugged indifferently but she saw a scowl creep back up on his face. Okay, so that had apparently been the wrong thing to say. She knew the next thing she was going to say had a very high chance of being the wrong thing, also, but it was his favorite subject so Emma decided to take the chance, hesitantly asking, "So two weeks… what about the revenge plans?"

"I'll still be looking for portals while I'm there," Killian answered, still somewhat withdrawn, "I'd been planning to go back to look more, anyway."

"How long do you think you'll be gone?"

"Hard to say."

Well that was bleak news and Emma could feel her chest constricting. "Do you think the powder will work?"

"If I do find some," Killian bleakly concluded, "No, I don't. Not in the way she wants it to, at least."

"What do you mean?"

"The powder is what gives _inanimate_ objects life," Killian elaborated tiredly, correcting his wording that he had 'tweaked' earlier for Regina, causing Emma to inwardly groan. "If a heartless corpse counts as inanimate and it does work, I don't think he'll be the same man, not really," he eyed her intently, coaxingly stating, "You can't bring back the dead, darling."

She had figured as much. Emma swallowed down the lump forming in her throat, her eyes flashing in concern and warning as she told him, "Regina will kill you if it doesn't work."

"Yeah, well," Killian retorted, turning rigid, "she said she would kill me for taking her father's heart too and I'm not dead yet, if you hadn't noticed."

After such another bitter statement from him, Emma wasn't sure what more she could say or do, but if he really was leaving for Oz, she didn't want this to be their parting conversation. "Okay, well… there is," Emma nervously stammered, figuring out how to bring this up to him, "actually-"

"What is it?" Killian patiently asked, and at least now she could see some amusement in his face as he noticed her distress.

Emma finally just blurted out, "My birthday's later this week and I want you to be there."

Killian blinked, surprise washing over him, "Oh."

"I just don't want _this_ to be goodbye, if you don't even know how long you're even going to be gone," Emma wearily debated. No, she didn't want to say goodbye now, not like this when he was still visibly angry at her, "You don't actually have to come to _that_," she emphasized, thinking of the ball and starting to babble, "just come by sometime before you leave, I guess."

"I'll try," Killian properly promised, frustratingly keeping a blank face.

Emma nodded, not that he gave much of an answer anyway, but she guessed that was the best she could hope for. "Okay," she replied before turning to go inside of Red's. So much had happened and gone wrong in the past 24 hours and it seemed like the thing that was bothering her most was that he never brought up the possibility of maybe going to Oz with him. And then another frightening thought hit her. Red had probably heard everything.

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A/N: Sooo... Emma definitely has a lot on her plate right now :( especially in the next chapter. What do y'all think of the Oz thing? The powder is a canon object in the Oz series (Baum calls it the 'Powder of Life' but I just felt way too cheesy writing that), I'm not just making it up out of nowhere. Will she end up going with him? Or he will even ask her to? or better yet, will he show up to her birthday?

Killian is just extremely frustrated right now because he's been trying so hard to make sure she's safe and to show he does care and to him, it seems like Emma is always constantly trying to destroy all of that so of course he is going to get mad. And the two weeks he asked for wasn't random, he was definitely being evasive when Emma started bringing up him still being in the Enchanted Forest. Revenge is still a huge priority for him. ;)

And what did y'all think of Luke? His is moody right now but seriously, how else can you act when an evil queen kidnaps you in hopes of being able to use you against the girl you love one day, only when that days comes and you're finally free, she's clearly infatuated with a pirate? The Emma he knew is not the Emma that is in the story now

**Next Chapter Summary**: With Snow's help, Emma comes to terms with her feelings for Killian and Luke, and contemplates what she wants to do with the wardrobe. The night before her birthday, Rumplestiltskin shows up ready to cash in on the favor she owes him.


	13. Chapter Twelve

Hey everyone! :) First of all, I want to say a huge THANK YOU for the nominations this story got for the Captain Swan awards. It's nominated for Best Multi-Chapter Fic, Best AU, and Best Overall Fic ! It's completely unbelievable. Seriously, all of you are amazing and wonderful for thinking of this story and taking the time to send in nominations for it. I was not expecting one, let alone three, and I am completely humbled and so so grateful. I'm sorry for the long wait between updates, this semester is a lot harder than I thought it would be so school is taking up a majority of my time but I do have all this story planned out, till the very end, so I always work on it in my free time and will finish it. We are getting close to a halfway point soon. Thank you so much again for the nominations and for reading :) enjoy!

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**Chapter Twelve**

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"What do you think about this one?" Emma asked in a hopeful voice as she pulled the curtain on her mirror aside to get a look at herself. Still wary of Regina watching her, she would only pull it aside for necessary amounts of time. She couldn't avoid looking in mirrors for the rest of her life. Plus, she happened to be trying on dresses, deciding which one to wear for her birthday tomorrow. And it was not going well. Emma hated dresses and she hated balls, especially ones that were thrown for her. Normally, she didn't go through this much trouble to find a dress or really care which one she wore, but there was a nervous, hopeful acid bubbling up in her stomach as the of her birthday got closer and suddenly, every dress she tried on was the most hideous, frilly thing she had ever seen and she felt ridiculous.

Pinocchio studied her for a moment. He sighed and looked down at the small piece of wood he had been carving into on her bed, "You look good."

"You've said that about every dress I've tried on," Emma shot back exasperatedly. Looking back in the mirror, she instantly decided against this one. The purple washed out her face, the cut was unflattering, and the poufy lace was way too gaudy. She didn't even know why she cared so much. Well, actually she did, but she would rather die than have to admit it.

"Well they all looked good," Pinocchio half-heartedly argued, shrugging and clearly bored.

Emma shot him a dark look, muttering, "You're not helping."

Raising his eyebrows at her, he asked, "And this surprises you?"

"You're my escort," Emma sighed, a pathetic excuse of an argument, trying not to let all of the nervousness and dread she was feeling slip out. She hated her birthday. She hated the extra attention and people fussing over her, and the fact the she was forced to be having a ball for this one was making her anxiety about it more crippling than usual. Plus, nothing good ever happened on her birthday and it seemed to get increasingly worse with each passing year. It was like it was cursed. On her 18th birthday, Regina had tried to rip out her heart. On her 19th birthday, she had gotten into a viscous screaming match with Caroline in front of all their families and friends. Well, nothing had particularly happened on her 20th birthday, but it was only a short time after it she crossed paths with Captain Hook. She wouldn't consider meeting Killian a bad thing, but as she looked back now, it was certainly more life changing than she ever thought it would be. Thinking of Killian doubled the knots in her stomach. She hadn't heard from him since they had parted ways at Red's and she wasn't sure if was coming tomorrow. She wanted him to, more than she would ever admit, but she knew he was more likely to surprise her in her room when she was least expecting it like he usually did. That is, if he even bothered to come say goodbye at all, but that was something Emma still couldn't bring herself to think about.

"A duty I will perform to the best of my ability," Pinocchio said, smirking at her, "but now that Luke's back, I'm still a little confused on why you haven't asked him."

Emma bit her lip, a frustrated sigh threatening to escape her. It was a question she had been asked for days, especially by her parents, who had been ecstatic about Luke's reappearance. The whole kingdom had been. Everyone welcomed Luke back into their lives with ease, except for her. She didn't understand how they did and how they could think she could as well. It wasn't like she was still resentful toward him, she knew the truth now, but it was like he just didn't… fit anymore. She was different and deep down, she knew he had to be different too. She was eighteen anymore and too much had happened in her life since then. Or maybe, really, Killian had just happened. But even without Killian in the picture, she knew she still wouldn't have asked Luke. There was only one person who could make her ball somewhat enjoyable, and that was her friend standing right in front of her. "I told you, it's-" Emma began dismissively.

"Complicated," Pinocchio interjected with a bored tone, rolling his eyes, "I know."

Feeling his eyes start to study her suspiciously, Emma averted her gaze from his and quickly turned back around to look at her reflection in the mirror once more. What was she suppose to say? That she was holding out for a revenge driven pirate? "This is hopeless," Emma angrily mumbled, hating the frilly dress she had on, and roughly dragged the heavy curtain back over the mirror with a defeated sigh.

Pinocchio groaned and ran an annoyed hand over his face. "Why don't you ask Alexandria?" he eagerly suggested.

Shooting him a dark look, Emma replied, "She would be dead within the hour."

"Point taken," Pinocchio quipped back, knowing Alexandria's overbearing tendencies, especially when it came to balls. She had been dying to give Emma a 'makeover' since they could walk, "Why don't you ask Snow?"

"Ask me what?" the person in question's voice rang from the doorway, causing Emma to freeze. Turning, she saw her mother standing there with a curious look on her face. After her argument with Killian she had been right, Red had heard everything. And no matter what Emma said or begged or argued, she couldn't convince her not to tell Snow what she overheard. Her parents had been furious that she had lied to them and gone to meet with Regina without telling them and there was nothing Emma could say to vindicate herself. She had been trying to avoid them as much as possible lately, not only because of their anger, but because they now seemed to know more happened with Killian and Neverland than she had been letting on. How could she answer their questions about him when she wasn't even sure of the answers herself?

Awkwardly clearing her throat, Emma sheepishly admitted, "I can't decide what dress to wear tomorrow."

After a long moment of silence, Emma saw her mother shoot Pinocchio a sideways glance. "That's my cue," Pinocchio said a little too happily, quickly jumping up from her bed. Before he made it out the door, he paused and turned back to Emma. Pointing a finger, he playfully mused, "Let me know what color you decide on," Pinocchio grinned, mockingly suggesting, "we can match."

Rolling her eyes, Emma couldn't help but smile as she watched him leave the room before she turned and saw her mother still staring somewhat somberly at her. Her mood instantly deflated again. "I know you're still mad at me…" Emma began quietly.

"Emma, of course I'm mad," Snow chastised, her voice exasperated but still warm, "You put yourself in some serious danger by going to meet with Regina, not to mention the fact that you lied to us about it."

Feeling guilt flood through her, Emma tiredly snapped, "I said I was sorry."

"You haven't actually," Snow corrected, a small, amused smile on her face, "But just because I'm upset doesn't mean you can't come to me for help." Emma knew that. She wasn't avoiding her parents due to their feelings, but to her own that she was scared to acknowledge. She was overwhelmed and could feel change coming and wanted nothing more than to run away for a few days and forget about everything. But she couldn't, nor would she ever, she was determined to stay stronger than that. The kingdom needed her, her parents needed her, everyone needed her. Snow walked over to the rack of dresses hanging in her room. "Now what's wrong with the dresses?" she asked patiently as she sorted through them, "You've never cared about this type of thing before."

"I don't know, I just-" Emma irritably stammered, unable to come up with a reason, "just pick which one you like and tell me to wear it."

Snow's green eyes fixed themselves on Emma and seemed to bore straight through her. Emma fidgeted with the beading of the dress she currently had on, willing herself not look up at her mother and risk giving too much away. After a moment, Snow knowingly queried, "This is more than about dresses, isn't it?"

Emma groaned. She knew this was coming and she wanted to murder Red for quoting her argument with Killian to Snow and then proceeding to describe it as a 'lover's quarrel'. Emma definitely remembered the conversation a little differently. "I know what you're going to say and – "

"I just think there's more to whatever happened between you and Hook than you're letting on," Snow coaxingly asserted.

"Because of what Red overheard?" Emma gaped outrageously at Snow, shaking her head in incredulousness. This whole conversation was ridiculous and why the hell could she feel herself starting to blush? "It's nothing, seriously," Emma frantically protested. When Snow kept looking at her expectantly, Emma forcefully pleaded, "Can you please just drop it?"

After another moment of watching her, Snow gasped, "You're in love with him."

"No, I'm-" Emma automatically started to argue, her reflexes always trained to deny.

"Yes, you are," Snow repeated, staring at Emma unbelievably. She didn't _love_ Killian, did she? She had feelings for him and her head started to buzz as she thought about his kiss, but she didn't… Oh shit. Maybe she did. She loved him. She loved their banter, his determination and humor, the way he had brushed her hair out of her face when he had woken her from her nightmare, how he had always been able to see the real her and challenge her unlike any other person, his lips, the way he never stopped fighting. She loved _him_. There was nothing in the world she wanted more than Killian Jones. There was no denying it, no going back. And she could already see herself heading straight for disaster. "Emma?" Snow implored anxiously, noticing the tears Emma could feel start welling up in her eyes and the walls she had put up to keep her feelings about him hidden come crumbling down.

"I don't know what to do," Emma whispered hoarsely, her heart throbbing painfully as realization dawned on her, "I don't know if he'll ever be able to feel the same way when he is still so consumed with revenge," As much as he had tried to hide it from her since she had accused him of it in Rumplestiltskin's cell, it was still there. She could see it buried deep in his eyes. It would always be there, it would never go away. He never be at peace, not really, until Rumplestiltskin was dead or until he killed himself trying, "which also makes me afraid that…"

Snow nodded, somberly finishing in a soft voice, "He's still in love with her."

She wasn't sure if Killian had let go of Milah, or if he ever could be fully able to. She had always avoided the question because a part of her was afraid to know the answer. He had spent 300 years planning a revenge in her name. "I can't believe I'm getting jealous of a dead person," Emma bitterly mumbled. She admired his loyalty but was still distraught over it and briefly wondered if he would bother with any revenge for her if she died.

"Do you still love Luke?" Snow asked, pulling Emma from her thoughts.

"I did, but I'm not the Emma that fell in love with him anymore," Emma sedately explained, adding, "and I'm not the Emma he fell in love with either." Things would never be the same between them again. She knew that and she could see that Luke had known it the moment he realized had automatically believed Regina and given up on him. Those three years couldn't be erased. "I'm not the same person I used to be and I can't just go back to being that person just because something I thought turns out not to be true," Emma concluded, surprising calm and resigned, "I don't feel any resentment toward him, its not his fault, but one revelation doesn't erase years of pain away."

Snow briefly closed her eyes, guilt and anger settling on her features, "Pain you shouldn't have even experienced in the first place."

"That still doesn't change anything," Emma replied seriously. If everything with Regina hadn't happened, she never would have met Killian, and that was something she couldn't imagine anymore.

"One of the things I've always wanted for you, Emma, was for you to find true love," Snow declared lovingly, gazing earnestly at her, "and if you think that it's Hook…"

"Well I'll never really know, will I?" Emma quipped wryly, trying not to sound too bitter.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm the product of true love," Emma shrugged, laughing humorlessly as she pointed at herself, "I am literally true love. True love's kiss seems kind of moot at this point," she muttered under her breath. In theory, her magic, her kiss, should be able to break any curse, no matter who it was. She would never have that reassurance, like her parents, of knowing if her love was true or not.

"True love's kiss doesn't have to happen for you to know," Snow professed confidently, grabbing Emma's hand, "You figure that out in your heart."

Emma knew what her heart was telling her. "I have to give it to him," she whispered suddenly.

Snow's brows knotted in confusion for a second before realization washed over her face. "Emma…" she began carefully, knowing she was referring to the wardrobe they had kept hidden and secret for so long.

"I know I'm suppose to use if it the curse still somehow happens," Emma argued, her voice turning desperate, "but what other choice do I have?" There wasn't one. She was choosing him, which meant she had to tell him everything. "If what he wants is revenge, if that's what will make him happy, how can I not give that to him?" Emma implored with a defeated shrug. But another question plagued her mind, one that originated from a tiny flicker of hope in her heart and would haunt her if she never got it answered, "How will I ever know that if faced with the choice between getting his revenge and me," Emma croaked, "he would choose me?"

"Is that something you really want to know?" Snow questioned, hesitation and warning in her voice. It was question that had the potential to give her happiness or devastate her completely.

"Yes," Emma stated confidently. That was the only way she would ever be sure of him. That he was indeed her true love. That he would choose her like she was choosing him.

"You know I'll trust whatever you do," Snow sighed, looking resigned and caring, "but still just take some time to think about it."

Emma nodded to console her mother but she had already made her decision, she would hand the wardrobe over to him the second he got back from Oz. If he managed to come back with it, the powder wasn't going to work anyway, he had already told her as much. Regina would be furious and would be out for blood for her false hope that would devastatingly crushed. He would need to escape the Enchanted Forest anyway if he wanted to live. She would be saving him and giving him his revenge. That would be enough for her. She would be able to handle Regina on her own once he and Rumplestiltskin were gone. "I invited him to come tomorrow," Emma confessed off-handedly to her mother, somewhat embarrassed, "Well, kind of anyway. He probably won't even come."

Snow tried to keep a straight face, but Emma could tell she still was a little wary about Killian but was still trying to be supportive. "We should keep that information from your father for as long as possible," Snow eventually contented. Emma couldn't stop the rush of heat to her cheeks. She remembered the look on her father's face when he had seen the huge mark on her neck, the one that just so happened to pop up after she had returned from freeing Killian from the dungeon. He had definitely put two and two together and it had not been pretty. "This one," Snow said, handing over a dress with an excited gleam in her eyes.

"Thanks," Emma breathed, extremely grateful that there was one less decision she had to make.

Snow called out to her once more before she left the room. "And Emma?"

"Yeah?" Emma answered confusedly.

A sly smile formed on her lips before Snow cryptically related, "He'll come." And Emma wasn't sure if that relieved her or made her even more nervous.

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It was later that night when her father walked into her room, a grave look on his face. "Emma," he told her, his voice grim with raging undertones, "someone's here to see you."

Her mind automatically jumped to Killian, but no, he would just pop up in her room and come straight to her, not go through her father first. And while her father would be angry to see him, he certainly be acting like he was now, more anxious than outright annoyed. Emma nodded hurriedly at him and followed him down to the throne room, her mind conjuring up scenario after scenario but she was not prepared for who she saw was waiting for her. "Hello, your majesty," Rumplestiltskin greeted her with a manic grin and a flourishing bow. No. No. He was here about the favor she owed him, of that she had no doubt. And she knew whatever it was, it could not be good. She saw him turn to Charming, "I requested a _private_ conversation with the princess."

Charming took a defiant step forward, bellowing, "Absolutely not."

"Dad," Emma commanded, grabbing his arm to stop him from doing anything else. She looked up at him reassuringly, "it's fine." Charming glanced back down at her, still looking torn, but after nodding at him again and trying to communicate that she could handle Rumplestiltskin on her own, he reluctantly strode out of the room. Once she heard the door close, Emma turned to the Dark One, obviously displeased, "What do you want?"

"It seems, dearie," Rumplestiltskin went out cheerily, not affected by the dark looks Emma was sending him, "that you owe me a favor."

He had to pick now. He had to pick the day before her birthday and the ball. The day she had finally been able to admit she was in love with Killian. The man had perfect timing. "I don't think…" Emma began, hoping to try to extend whatever deal they had.

"I don't think you have any choice in the matter," Rumplestiltskin interjected before she could spit out any excuses, his voice more forceful than before, "A deal's a deal, is it not?"

Emma swallowed the nervous lump forming in her throat, quietly replying, "Yes."

"Good. What I want from you is quite simple really," Rumplestiltskin mused, circling around the table before pointing a dramatic finger at her, "I need you to find out where Hook is hiding _the_ heart."

_No_. Her heart dropped to the floor and she immediately felt nauseous. She couldn't do that, for so many reasons. She couldn't betray Killian like that and she couldn't let that curse happen. Emma did her best to remain stonewalled in front of him. She would not let him have the satisfaction of knowing how this was effecting her. Why would he want the heart anyway? The curse would take them to a land without magic and he was a man obsessed with it. "Why would you want to know that?" Emma hissed.

Rumplestiltskin shrugged nonchalantly, pompously saying, "I have my reasons."

"That's the only thing stopping Regina's curse from happening," Emma balefully reminded him, glaring at him outrageously in hopes to get the point across if he didn't realize it already.

"Precisely," he answered with his signature giggle that sent shivers up and down Emma's spine, "and that curse will happen," Rumplestiltskin went on, his voice turning more menacing and articulated, "even if I to pry it from the Queen's cold, dead fingers."

Sick, hateful bile rose up in the back of her throat at his words. She hated him. For what he was doing now, for what he did to Killian, and for what he would no doubt do in the future. "He won't tell me," Emma spat out, hoping the acid in her voice would help her bluff even more. Killian had already offered to show her where the heart was before and she knew he would still show her if she asked him to.

"Oh I doubt that," Rumplestiltskin replied, looking amused as he called her bluff, "Don't look at it as a betrayal," he dismissively suggested, "All you have to do is get him to say it out loud."

Say it out loud? Was he expecting to be there, listening, if she did this? And there was no way she was going to. Besides, thanks to Regina, she already had the perfect excuse. "He's on his way to Oz right now," Emma informed him, trying to keep a smug smile off of her face, "I don't know when he'll be back."

"You mean you didn't give him an invitation to your birthday?" Rumplestiltskin quipped, shooting down her attempts once more, "Mine must have gotten lost in the mail as well."

"I may have invited him, but I doubt he'll show up," Emma anxiously blurted, knowing there was some truth in her words, "pirates and balls don't really seem to mix."

"Ah, but" Rumplestiltskin countered, a crazed, hateful grin on his face as he held up both of his pointer fingers one by one, "Killian and Emma do."

The sharp pain in her chest was making it hard to breathe. Yes. They did mix. And that was why she couldn't do this. "Why do you need me to do this?" Emma asked, failing to hide her desperation from seeping through.

"Hook would die before giving up the heart's location, except perhaps to one person," Rumplestiltskin argued, looking pointedly at her.

And she would rather die than betray him to the person who he hated most. "Well then just kill me and make him tell you."

"Already happened once before," Rumplestiltskin digressed, tauntingly circling her as referred to Killian's past with him, "and then he wasn't entirely truthful. And killing you wouldn't benefit me at all," he drawled, coming to stand directly in front of her, "The only thing harder to break than curses, is destiny," Rumplestiltskin's voice turned low and dangerous as he moved far to close to her for comfort but she remained unmoved, determined to not back down, "And on your 28th birthday," he went on, hissing and pointing a finger at her chest, "you will break that curse." After a long pause, Rumplestiltskin finally stepped away from her, adding lightly, "I'd prefer not to have you as enemy when that happens."

"And forcing me to do this won't make you an enemy?" Emma lividly shot back, trying to hide how much his speech had shaken her. His words wouldn't stop repeating in her head and she was sure they were going to haunt her dreams tonight. The curse couldn't happen. She wouldn't let it.

"I could always kill him once you get him to tell you," Rumplestiltskin shrugged, making her blood turn cold at the thought of what he was suggesting, "But I'll refrain from doing so, just this once."

"You want the curse to happen?" Emma hotly debated, still confused as to why he was almost insanely determined for it to be cast, "But in a land without magic – " Killian would finally be able to kill him.

Rumplestiltskin cut her off, viciously and maniacally raising his voice, "I'm not here to talk curses, dearie."

Emma knew better than to try to push him now. She may have magic but he had been the Dark One for over 300 years and she didn't have a chance at beating him, not yet anyway. "And what happens if I don't get him to tell me?" Emma curiously implored, wanting to know what to prepare for tomorrow because she wasn't going to give him the location of the heart. Not now, not ever.

"Let's just say the consequences will be quite deadly," Rumplestiltskin said threateningly, looking at her as though he could read her thoughts.

So what exactly was he saying? That he would kill Killian if she didn't? That he would kill her? Her heart was pounding so heavily she was almost feeling dizzy. "I won't help you," Emma choked out determinately.

"I'll be hanging around tomorrow night," Rumplestiltskin continued like he hadn't heard her, "so just get him to say it and you'll be," he sent her a leering grin, "off the hook."

"No," Emma stated fervently. No. No. No.

"When the time comes, I'm afraid you'll find yourself… unable to resist," Rumplestiltskin told her cryptically before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. What did that mean? That magic would carry out her deal no matter what she wanted? But she had magic. She would be able to resist. She had to.

But she couldn't shake the overwhelming feeling that her world was about to come crashing down.

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A/N: Ahhh so what did everyone think?! Emma loves him. Too soon or perfect timing? In regards to Snow, I do think she will probably be the most supportive of a Emma/Hook relationship, especially if she sees Emma truly does care about him. The way it showed her so cynical about love before Charming walked into her life, I don't think she would try to deny her daughter that even if she did love a pirate. That's why I always hate AUs of the fairytale land that have Snow and Charming forcing Emma into an arranged marriage because after all they went through to be together, I seriously doubt they would want their daughter to settle for anything less.

Okay, sorry, rant over :) Thank you so much for reading and please, please leave a review to let me know you're still interested and reading!

Love you all!

**Next Chapter Summary**: Emma's 21st birthday.

^Sorry, all I can put without giving too much away ;) let's just say that next chapter, shit is going down. It's going to wrap up a lot of the stuff that has been happening in the first half of this story and sneakily introduce the bigger problems that have been building in the background that Emma and Killian will have to face.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

Hello everyone :) Thank you for all the reviews last chapter and to all the new followers, and thanks to everyone who is still reading along. This chapter would just not cooperate, I think I've rewritten it like 10 times, and I'm not sure if this is what I really wanted to put out, but I'm heading to SXSW tomorrow (hopefully seeing The Enemies while I'm there!) so it was now or never. Hope you all like it :) listened to Stay by Rihanna non-stop for it.

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**Chapter Thirteen**

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The combination of the lighthearted music and chatter of her guests did nothing but increase her splitting headache and numbing ringing in her ears as she walked with Pinocchio through the ballroom, greeting and thanking random guests that approached her; guests that remained nameless and faceless, her anxiety and apprehension over the night in general clouding her every thought and action. The ball had started over an hour ago and it was a wonder she had made it through just that much of it. Her red dress was too tight around her middle and since it was strapless, her blonde hair had to remain down in order to cover the bruise that was still on her back from one of Regina's guards, causing uncomfortable sweat to form on the back of her neck. An hour in, and still no sign of Killian _or_ Rumplestiltskin. Where Rumplestiltskin was concerned, she could never see him again and be perfectly happy. But Killian, she was so torn about him showing up it was making her painfully nauseous. She knew she would be beyond ecstatic if he did end up showing, just because she asked him to, but it was extremely selfish of her to wish, to even vainly hope for that. It would be better for him not to be here, to not give her the chance to betray him and possibly risk activating the curse. There were too many possible consequences of him coming. And if he did, she only hoped she could send him away before she got a chance to ask for the hearts location and before Rumplestiltskin realized it. After what Rumplestiltskin said about her not being able to resist, she didn't trust herself to be around Killian for too long. She had already found herself unable to tell her parents what Rumplestiltskin's favor had been, no matter how much she tried to get the words out of her mouth. Magical contracts were magically binding. If worse came to worse, hopefully her magic would be strong enough to break it.

"Is there something going on I need to know about?" Pinocchio suddenly whispered in her ear, breaking her out of her thoughts and, apparently, not so subtle sweep of the room with a slight jump.

Emma cleared her throat and tried to relax her tense posture, faking an innocent look. "What?"

"Your parents won't take their eyes off of you," Pinocchio said dryly with an incredulous eye roll toward where her parents were dancing and, just like he said, both glancing nervously over at her every few seconds. He narrowed his eyes accusingly at her, "and you look like you're ready for a battle to start any second."

"You know how much I hate these things," Emma absentmindedly muttered, biting her lip in frustration and unable to look him in the eyes. She didn't think she could tell him what was going on even if she wanted to.

Pinocchio raised a suspicious eyebrow, sneering under his breath, "If you don't have any daggers hidden anywhere under that dress, then the Blue Fairy can turn me back to wood."

"Everything's fine," Emma snapped, her voice low and full of warning. But he was right, she had at least two tied to her legs. Before he could reply, he was cut off by a high, enthusiastic voice making its way toward them through the crowd.

"Emma!" Alexandria excitedly called as she weaved through the crowd toward her with a bright smile on her face.

Doing her best to appear in good spirits, Emma gave her friend a weary, "Hey."

"You look gorgeous," Alexandria complimented in a dramatic voice, beaming as she gripped Emma in a tight hug. She looked over Emma's dress with an appraising eye and pretended to wipe a tear away, "I'm so proud."

Emma rolled her eyes, a little embarrassed and tried to wave off the compliment with a hand. If only she knew that it had been her mother who had picked out the dress. Beside her, Pinocchio bowed slightly, greeting warmly, "Alexandria."

Alexandria curtseyed, giggling, "Pinocchio." It made Emma want to barf. She was soon distracted from her friends' banter, though, when she caught sight of Caroline and William in the crowd, standing off to side, whispering to each other, while Luke stood off to side looking a little out of place.

"Just ignore her," Alexandria commanded flippantly, catching Emma staring. She could feel her study her cautiously before reluctantly adding, "Luke looks good."

"Yeah," Emma sighed, inwardly groaning though at the comment. It was all she had heard for days. It did nothing but build her anger that people presumed she would automatically want to start where they left off and the guilt that she was the reason he had disappeared in the first place. Especially now. He truly looked lost standing next to his sister, like he didn't even think he belonged there anymore. It painstakingly contrasted with the boy she remembered. "I think he's doing well, considering…" Emma said, her sentence trailing off with implication.

"How are you?" Alexandria implored, her eyes shining with interested concern.

"I'm fine," Emma quickly replied, taking a deep breath as she looked back over at Luke. "How do you feel about stealing my date for awhile?" She pushed Pinocchio toward Alexandria, with an impish grin on her face, "I probably should go talk to him."

She didn't bother looking back or checking to see if they agreed before she walked off. At least by talking to Luke she felt like she was doing something besides just waiting around for hell to break loose and talk to someone who knew what all was really going on in her life, besides her parents. Emma had kept her eyes trained on Luke so she wouldn't lose where he was among the crowd that she didn't notice she had run into someone until she felt a sharp pain on her left forearm. She looked down and already saw blood pouring from a small, but deep, gash. "Pardon me, Your Majesty," the man she had bumped into gasped and quickly bowed. He was wearing a deep purple suit and his accent was one she wasn't quite familiar with, "Please forgive me."

"It's fine," Emma calmly reassured, smiling hesitantly as she attempted to grip her forearm in order to control the bleeding. As she studied him, she couldn't even she what she could have run into on his person to cause a cut and a weird feeling knotted in her stomach. She had been attending balls her entire life and knew almost everyone in the room by name, but she didn't think she had ever seen him before. Light brown skin and dark hair, but his eyes were piercing and there was something about them that was sending whispers into her brain saying there was something familiar about them. That if she thought hard enough, she could figure out where she might know him.

"It seems my clumsiness has gotten the best of you," the man went on, indicating her arm. He pulled out a handkerchief and started dabbing at her arm, "Here."

The knotted feeling was growing stronger and she had always been one to follow her gut. She quickly pulled her arm away. "No, really, it's nothing," Emma insisted, hoping she didn't sound to urgent, "I can take care of it."

The man paused but quickly flourished a hand toward her and stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket with a smile on his face that made her feel a bit uncomfortable, "As you wish."

"Emma." Luke's voice rang out in authority to her right and she let out a sigh of relief she didn't know she had been holding. She gave Luke a thankful smile before turning to dismiss herself from the man, only to see he was already gone and walking off in the other direction.

Luke strode up to her, still watching the man with a dubious expression on his face, "Who was that?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Emma muttered under her breath, trying to shake away the haunting feeling that had started to creep up in her mind. This whole night had made her too paranoid.

"You okay?" Luke asked, nodding to her arm.

Emma shrugged, mumbling, "I've had worse." Understatement of the year. An awkward silence overtook them. Her minor detour with the mysterious man hadn't given her enough time to think through all she wanted to say to him. Instead, she pathetically implored, "How is everything?"

"It's good, though I'm surprised my parents didn't follow me here," Luke told her with a heavy sigh. He gave her a very pointed look, knowing she would understand the feeling, "They haven't let me out of their sight in days."

She looked around and noticed they weren't here. "Not as lively as they used to be?"

Luke tiredly shook his head. "Definitely not." Emma knew that probably wasn't true, she had always loved Frederick and Abigail. It just confirmed what she already knew, that with everything going on in the Enchanted Forest, it was the wrong time to be having a ball, and some were not willing to sacrifice even one night.

"I'm so sorry," Emma stated suddenly, her voice soft. She didn't know what else she could possibly say. Not only did she feel responsible for him, but now she was feeling responsible for the entire Enchanted Forest, whose existence could be challenged tonight, on whether or not she had the strength to fend off Rumplestiltskin. She looked up at him, trying to convey how much she regretted giving up on the boy who no longer existed, practically destroyed by her and the role fate had so _kindly_ bestowed on her that constantly seemed to make her a target, "about everything."

Luke studied her for a long moment, his eyes unreadable, until he looked down quietly breathing out, "Me too." He cleared his throat and shot his eyes back at her arm, suggesting, "You should probably go take care of that."

Emma nodded, blinking back tears, and gave him a weak smile before getting back up to her room as fast as she could. At the sight of her bed, she almost collapsed, wanting nothing more to sleep through the rest of the night, but her absence from the ball wouldn't go unnoticed for long. She found some bandages and focused as much as she could on wrapping her arm, trying to think of anything but the curse, Killian, Luke, and the plots and never ending grudges she seemed to be caught in the middle of. She was stuck in the middle of a war where they would be no winners.

Feeling like she needed some more air to calm her nerves, she opened the window like structure to her balcony and walked out into the cool night air. Walking and bracing herself against the stone edge, she looked down to her right and could see inside the terrace where people were still dancing, oblivious to anything but the party. Lucky them.

She jumped when she felt arms snake around her waist, hot breath murmuring huskily in her ear, "It looks like I've caught myself a princess."

Killian. Her heart soared and shattered into a million pieces at the same time. She swiftly turned around to face him, her arms gripping his shoulders in an attempt to keep herself from throwing her arms around his neck. "You're here," she marveled, trying to hide the shakiness in her voice. It felt like she was being ripped in half. Now that he was here it was like a weight in her chest had been lifted, but as much as she had missed him and wanted him here, she had to get him out and as far away as possible.

"I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to see you finally behaving like a true and proper royal," Killian smirked, his blue eyes shining in amusement as he reached up and straightened the tiara on her head.

"Shut up," Emma chided, swatting his hand down, trying not to laugh but also feeling a little self-conscious at his words. She didn't like the thought of somehow being above him, because she wasn't, but the crown on her head would make everyone else say otherwise, "I feel ridiculous enough already."

He eyed her up and down, too slowly for anyone not to notice. "You certainly don't look ridiculous," Killian countered, his voice lowering an octave as he reached up and began to stroke her cheek with his thumb. The way he was looking at her was making her breath hitch and sent jolts of electricity down her stomach. Her eyes moved briefly to his lips that were closing in on hers when _Say you'll kiss him only if he tells you where the heart is_ popped faintly into her brain. She froze, not knowing where the thought came from. Feeling her stiffen, he immediately dropped his hand, but did not step away, "What is it?" Killian implored, and while concern laced his voice but she could see a flicker of suspicion in his eyes. She didn't know how she was going to make it through this when he read her well enough to know when something wasn't right.

"Nothing," Emma claimed hurriedly, feigning indifference, "It's just cold." It wasn't a lie. She _was_ wearing a strapless dress and the breeze rolling off from the water below was causing goose bumps to form on her arms. Looking down, she noticed his change of attire for the first time. Suppressing a grin, she ghosted her fingers over the buttons of his vest. "I think this is the first time I've seen you in something other than black," Emma noted warmly.

"It seemed the occasion called for it," Killian replied, his smirk turning haughty, "I see you're wearing red as well, love."

"Coincidence," Emma stated flatly, seeing a wicked gleam enter his eyes. She raised a skeptical eyebrow, challenging, "Or have you been spying on me?"

He tsked playfully. "Now, darling, have you ever known me to do such a thing?" Killian intoned, his eyes dancing with mischief. A real grin flitted across his face and it hit her even harder than it had the day before with her mother that she loved him. She stared up at him in awe, he really was beautiful. And there was a good chance she might lose him forever tonight. Without warning, she hurriedly plastered her lips against his, kissing him with everything she couldn't bring herself to say. He started kissing her back with just as much ferocity, his tongue plunging into her mouth, making her go weak in the knees and spread an intoxicating heat through her body. In a perfect world, she would live in his kiss, no Regina or Rumplestiltskin or anything else that would always be between them. She felt him start to pull away, guessing that he sensed there was more behind the desperation in her lips, but before he could she captured his tongue and started sucking. A groan rumbled in the back of his throat before he pushed her against the stone wall of the castle, his hand tangling in her head while hers gripped the edges of his coat and tried to bring him closer than he already was. He bit down on her bottom lip, grinding his hips needily into hers, and she could feel herself start to come undone. She needed more. She needed _him_. Her hands smoothed over his neck before she found the top of his shirt, desperately probing at it to try to get it off, needing to feel skin.

"Emma." Her father's voice forced her to wrench her mouth away from his, mouth gaping open in shock and panic. Her hands were frozen where they had been attempting pry open the buttons of his shirt and her dress was halfway twisted around, Killian's hand down the front of it. When had that even happened? If her father walked out into this scene, he would throw Killian off the balcony without hesitation or a hint of remorse. "Is everything okay?" his voice called again, followed by another heavy knock.

"Shit." Emma practically growled, her breathing still too heavy. Not moving, Killian was still looking dazed and she saw his eyes float back to her lips. For the love of God. She pried him off of her and hurriedly tried to set her dress right again. "Stay here," she hissed and fumbled back into her room just as her father was opening her door.

Charming furrowed his brows in confusion at her as he walked in. "Emma?"

"Dad," she dragged out, laughing breathlessly. Her hand wandered up to her hair and tried to stealthily flatten it. Shit, she didn't even think about what her hair must look like. No wonder he looked a little taken aback at her appearance, "What are you doing?"

"I wanted to make sure everything was okay up here," Charming said with a quick glance around the room, "You've been gone for awhile."

"Yeah, sorry, I was bandaging up my arm," Emma explained hurriedly, holding up her arm as evidence.

"Okay," her father nodded, but something in his demeanor suddenly changed, commanding, "tick tock."

Everything inside of her went cold. This wasn't her father, it wasn't him at all. It was Rumplestiltskin. He was here and this was her warning. She could almost see his face through her father's features now, looking smug and impatient. She guessed she should be thankful that he had given her at least some time with Killian before making himself known, though she was sure he had just been waiting to see if she would follow through on her favor on her own without him having to threaten his involvement. She had to get Killian out of here fast. "Just give me another minute," Emma said, her voice raw and emotionless, "I want to find some gloves first."

"Alright," he said coolly, eyeing her the entire way out the door.

Her eyes shut with the click of the door, readying herself to face Killian. After practically jumping his bones she was expecting him to wearing a satisfied, smug smirk on his face, ready to taunt her with her actions. And she was okay with that. It would make it easier to justify an argument and make him leave before Rumplestiltskin could stop him. But when she turned she received the complete opposite. It was the most open and honest expression she had ever seen on his face and it shook her to her core. No touch of arrogance or mocking anywhere. "I need to get back," Emma said hoarsely over the lump forming in her throat, making a move to leave the room.

Killian was in front of her in an instant, determined and anxious, "Come with me."

Emma's heart stopped. "What?"

"To Oz," Killian articulated hastily, surprising her by seeming nervous, "I want you to come with me," he repeated fervently, frantically continuing before he gave her a chance to answer, "Just think about it. Us, together, we'd be bloody brilliant and don't try to deny it," he challenged fiercely.

More than anything she wanted to go with him. _You could brilliant in a land without magic together too. Just say you'll go if he tells you where the heart is_. The thought was much stronger this time and she had to snap her mouth shut, the overwhelming urge to ask on the tip of her tongue. Her brain went to war with itself and she was having trouble forming coherent sentences. She eventually managed to roughly stumble out, "I'm not sure-"

He interjected, continuing on like he had list of arguments in his head and wasn't going to stop until he had said them all. "I know I can't expect you to drop everything and go gallivanting across the realms with me," Killian conceded with a short, humorless chuckle. Unable to look at her directly and almost as if it pained him to say the words, he quietly professed, "but I don't think I can stand being an entire world away from you."

The thought tore through her as well, but the flicker of doubt she still had reared itself as she remember another conversation she had with him in this room, briefly overtaking the need to ask about him about the heart. "You have before," Emma whispered bleakly.

It looked as if he had been expecting her words, but she could still see the sting of them on his features. "That's when I was still running, before I really knew…" Killian paused jaggedly, struggling with his words, something she had never seen him do. Regaining his composure, he irritability fretted, "Emma, please, I just –" he faltered again, taking a deep breath, "if something happened to you while I was gone…" he trailed off sullenly, his eyes dark.

"I can take care of myself," she couldn't help but argue.

"I know that," Killian exclaimed loudly before he sighed and ran his hand through his hair in exasperation, spitting out, "But every time I close my eyes I still see George dragging you off a cliff or you drowning-" he stopped short, letting out a frustrated breath as he reached his thumb up to her forehead and traced the faint scar she knew was there from scaling the cliff in Neverland. He dropped his hand, his blue eyes blazing and desperate as he pleaded, "Just come with me."

Yes. All she wanted to say was yes. And tell him to get the hell out of there._ Just ask him for the heart and then he can come with you to a land without magic. You won't have to send him through the wardrobe without a way to ever see him again._ Emma tried to throttle the voice in her head. "I can't," she accidently blurted out loud, crazily talking to herself.

"Why?" Killian demanded, his voice turning rigid and sharp, thinking she was talking to him. Damn it. She could hit herself. Her head started to pound as she tried concentrating on his words instead of the ones in her head. He swallowed, roughly asking, "Do you still not trust me?"

She shook her head, looking up at him with a pained expression since trust was still something that terrified her, but she couldn't lie to him, not when her trust was one of the only things he had ever asked of her. "I do," she admitted, her voice quiet and thick.

This seemed to relieve a bit, but his eyes flitted momentarily in the direction of where the ball was taking place. Killian's jaw clenched. "Do you still feelings for the lost prince?" he asked scathingly.

"No," she objected incredulously, disconcerted that he would even think that.

"Then why?" Killian repeated sternly, "If you're going to say no you better give me a damn good reason."

"I'm not saying no–" Emma spat out desperately, grabbing her head in frustration when she felt something cut herself off. Not that we would ever take no for an answer, apparently. She paused, trying to figure out what she _could_ say. "There's something I haven't told you," Emma lamented painfully.

"Okay, what?" Killian urged, his expression neutral and intent as he tried to read her, ready take whatever she was going to say.

"The arrow I got shot with wasn't just an arrow," Emma told him miserably, pain constricting in her chest. He didn't say anything, waiting for her to continue. She rolled her lips together, closing her eyes, croaking, "It was poisoned."

He nodded once, his eyes glazing over as he worked through what she had said. "If you're sick, we can find an antidote," Killian ardently volunteered, "We'll take the hat and-"

"No, I'm not sick," she interjected, her voice weak and laced with a tinge of bitterness. If only it were that simple, if only he had been there when she _had_ been sick.

"Then what is it?" Killian prompted again, struggling to stay calm when she still wouldn't say anything, "Emma, you can tell me. I'm not –"

The words she wanted to say wouldn't leave her mouth. "I'm sorry," Emma finally murmured hopelessly, looking down to hide the tears welling up in her eyes.

"No, darling," Killian hastily reprimanded, his voice almost panicked as he reached up tried to stop any of them from even leaving her eyes, "no need for any of that." If the situation had not been so serious, she definitely would have teased him. Who knew the fearsome Captain Hook was frightened of tears. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. Determination lacing his voice, he said, "Whatever it is, I'll make it okay," his eyes flashed with urgency, anxiously relating, "You just have to tell me."

His words stirred something in her and broke whatever seal that had been holding back all she wanted to say. It felt like she could finally breathe properly again. The next words came tumbling out of her mouth, "Rumplestiltskin healed me for a favor and I-" A sharp, sickening pain stabbed at her side, staggering her so much she gasped and stumbled forward. She gripped Killian's arms as waves of fire and dizziness shot through her. The familiar burning sensation coursing through her veins resurfaced memories of when she had slumped against one of her guards exactly like this, only in a village, not her room. It almost made her want to laugh, how she had not predicted that this would be his retaliation and instead had worried only for what he might do to Killian. That _bastard_.

Killian's hooked arm wrapped around her waist while his hand gripped her below, steadying her upright. "Emma, what's wrong?" he questioned sharply.

She heard a whoosh before Rumplestiltskin's voice echoed mirthlessly from behind her. "She's not holding up her end of the deal."

Emma tried to turn around to face Rumplestiltskin, but Killian had her in an iron grip, that at this point, was almost hurting worse than the poison. But it was giving her an opportunity to move her hand across his chest, allowing her to grab what she needed without him noticing. "What the hell did you do to her, crocodile?" Killian growled ferociously.

"I healed her in exchange for a favor," Rumplestiltskin replied with a manic giggle, "she's not following through on what I asked for," his demeanor turned more menacing, "so I'm taking back mine."

Killian's lips were suddenly at her ear. "What did he want to do?" he tensely asked, wanting her answer more than Rumplestiltskin's.

"The heart-" Emma began, but another stab of pain radiating through her side cut her short, forcing her to grit her teeth together. She had to get a grip if she was going to do this.

"So you can destroy it?" Killian fumed, anger and wrath dripping from his voice, "Too much of a coward to risk being sent to a land without magic?"

"Quite the opposite actually."

His conversation with Rumplestiltskin taking more of his focus, Emma felt Killian's grip loosen and she began to shrug herself away from him, steadying herself. "How do you even know your boy wants to be found?" he spat mercilessly.

Interrupting whatever Rumplestiltskin had been about to reply back, Emma braced her palms on Killian's chest. "I'm sorry," she whispered devastatingly, unable to look him in the eyes as she shot him out onto to the balcony behind him.

Starting to charge back inside, he roared, "Emma-" but was soon muffled by the protection spell she put around her room, effectively locking him out, as a white, shimmery barrier formed over her balcony door. She turned around to face Rumplestiltskin, refusing and forcing herself not to look back. Seeing the confirmation that he was never going to forgive her for this in his eyes would just kill her faster.

Rumplestiltskin stared bemusedly at her for a moment before he pointed a finger at the balcony, imploring, "And what exactly do you think you're doing, dearie?"

"Making sure you don't get what you want," Emma declared boldly. She knew Killian was probably banging against the barrier trying to find a way in, but any efforts remained mute. She could only feel ripples of movement from it in her mind. He was unintentionally giving her the reminder to keep part of her focus on it to keep it up.

"And how long do you expect to fight me off in your… condition?" Rumplestiltskin inquired tauntingly.

Emma smiled coyly. "Long enough."

When she said nothing else, Rumplestiltskin flourished his hands in the air dramatically, pushing her for more information, "For?"

"For this," Emma said simply, holding up the canister of squid ink she had grabbed from Killian's pocket. She quickly lowered her arm, focusing her strength on keeping her trembling limbs standing up straight.

Rumplestiltskin paused for a second, blankly eyeing the canister, before curiously asking, "Now where did you get that?"

"Does it matter?"

He studied her cautiously for a moment, but quickly soon regained his confident persona. "I commend your efforts," he went on warningly, "but that ink can only trap me for so long."

"I know," Emma replied with as much confidence as she could at the moment, hoping it would last long enough to get him to the wardrobe. It had to. Rumplestiltskin narrowed his eyes and looked expectant for more explanation but Emma gave a short, humorless laugh through her labored breathing, "If you think I'm telling you my trump card now you've got another thing coming."

Rumplestiltskin bared his teeth in a dangerous glare as he lifted his hand, forming a fireball in the air before throwing it straight at her. Emma quickly shot her hands up and blocked, not wasting any time in trying to retaliate. He flicked the energy directed at him away, sending it straight at the desk in her room, causing it crush to the floor. "Addicting, isn't it?" Rumplestiltskin taunted as she tried to attack him again, "the power?" Emma ignored him, blocking more of whatever he was trying to throw at her. Something started to trickle down the front of her face and once she tasted it on her lips she realized it was blood. "Remember all magic comes with a price," Rumplestiltskin giggled and poofed to the other side of the room in a cloud of purple smoke, acting like this was some kind of lesson instead of a fight, "and fueled by our emotions." His constant movement now was making her dizzy; her head was already being pounded with insane amounts of pressure from the poison still flowing through her and it she didn't know any better, she would have thought glass was stuck in her veins. Emma could feel blood start pouring from her nose now from exertion. She briefly wondered if anyone at the ball could hear the destruction going on and was at least reassured that her protection would prevent her parents from walking into the magical chaos. "Tell me," Rumplestiltskin mused, looking unscathed as he easily flicked away another beam of light she had shot at him, "is it your feelings for your precious pirate fueling you now or your _hate_ for me?" he provoked manically. With a growl, she used all the strength she could muster to shoot waves of power from her hands at him before it felt like her heart might give out.

Her head was spinning and the darkness was staggering her into confusion. She could feel a hand gripping the back of her neck, shaking her into consciousness. "Emma." At hearing Killian's voice, she fluttered her eyelids open, dizziness washing over her. Had she passed out? If Killian was in the room now, she must have and caused the protection spell to break. She noticed she was lying on the floor and looked down and saw a pool of blood beneath her, could feel it dripping from her lips. The poison and the exhaustion of fighting it to use magic was causing her to vomit blood. The whole thing made her want to vomit some more. She used all of her strength to rise to her elbows, trying to stand back up. "You have to keep your eyes open, love," Killian ordered lowly, his voice tight and controlled, but she could feel the slight shake of his hand as he attempted to wipe away the blood staining her lips and chin.

"Well you certainly lasted longer than I expected, dearie," Rumplestiltskin jeered in a bored tone, watching them from across the room, at ease, like this had been his plan the whole time.

Her entire body felt too hot as she forced away the exhaustion that was threatening to overtake her. Emma reached up and grabbed his forearm. "Killian," she breathed, trying to get him to help her up or trying to apologize for throwing him out onto the balcony and then failing to follow through on what little plan she had, she wasn't sure which. Maybe both.

Emma felt his muscles tense and she suddenly realized what she had done. She had never called him by his real name before, though she had been in her head since Neverland, she had never actually said it out loud. But this was the wrong moment to be getting sentimental and she wished she could take it back. She felt him start to move upwards and away from her. "Heal her and I'll tell you where the heart is," Killian commanded dementedly.

"No," she choked out, panicking as she tried to grip his hand to stop him from standing up, but it slipped from his palm entirely too easily, from her lack of strength and her blood that stained his. He ignored her protests and didn't look back down, moving to stand in front of her.

"Show me the heart," Rumplestiltskin suggested absentmindedly, "and then maybe I'll heal her."

She saw Killian take a step toward him. "Heal her _now_." He menacingly bellowed.

"We follow my terms of the deal," Rumplestiltskin barked. Emma felt another round of nausea threaten to spill. Her focus momentarily blurred, missing half of his speech about not getting tricked again. "How about you drink this and then I'll heal her," he pulled a vial out of thin air and then glanced smugly down at her, "I still need a curse broken."

The only way Killian was taking anything from him was over her dead body. She achingly pulled herself up on all fours. After glaring at Rumplestiltskin for a long moment, Killian acidly hissed, "What about the heart?"

"This will… incapacitate you," Rumplestiltskin explained with a flourish and made Emma's heated blood run cold in an instant. No longer caring or feeling her poisonous disposition, Emma fought against her body's protests to stand up, to end this in some way as Rumplestiltskin continued gleefully on with bargain, "More convenient for me to just search your memories for its location."

"Incapacitate?" Killian repeated malevolently. Every cell inside of Emma was screaming, cursing Rumplestiltskin to a fiery death. She had to stop this. Blazing thoughts brought her to her feet, her hands shakily supporting herself as she leaned against the tops of her knees.

Instead of answering, Rumplestiltskin looked past him and stared pointedly at her. "She seems to be fading fast," he quipped, inadvertedly giving her the last bit of determination needed to push against her knees.

Emma wobbly stood upright just as Killian snatched the vial from Rumplestiltskin's hands without another word. No. She couldn't let him do this. Just seeing it in his hand sent a burning rage through her. She could feel something heavy growing in her chest and knew without a doubt she had started to glow, just like she had in the garden with her parents and just as she had briefly when Regina had tugged against her chest trying to take her heart. Within those next few seconds, she saw a flicker of fear for the first time in Rumplestiltskin's eyes. If he feared the breaker of all curses, then she was about to give him a hell of a whole lot of it. She started to swell with power.

Killian was raising the vial to his lips.

_No_.

And then an explosion shot straight out of her chest.

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A/N: well... i really hope it flowed/made sense/everyone liked it. I don't really know what to say about it. Please leave a review if you can. It really just lets me know people are still reading and interested.

Love you all :)

Next chapter summary: The fallout.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

Hey :) hooray for spring break and letting me get this chapter out fast! Thank you so much for all the amazing reviews last chapter. I hope this story continues to live up to all of your kind words and expectations. Some more about the chapter will be explained at the end. Enjoy!

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**Chapter Fourteen**

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The first thing that started to come back was her hearing. "Emma…" a soft, anxious voice called. She could feel a hand on her cheek, another shaking her shoulder. "Emma, open your eyes…"

With a gasp, Emma's eyes popped open and revealed the blurry, tilting vision of her mother above her. Her head started to spin as reality and past events started to dizzyingly hit her.

"Are you okay?" Snow demanded, her voice worried and hysterical. Emma briefly registered that there were a couple of more people standing above her, the room still making its way into focus, but the last thing she remembered sent her heart racing in panic.

Emma sat up as fast as she could, her eyes darting around for Killian. "Where's-" she began, stopping short when she spotted him about a foot from her, lying passed out on his stomach. An immense surge of relief rushed over her when she saw Rumplestiltskin's vial, shattered with whatever potion was in it spilling all around it, untouched and not drunk. She had been able to knock it from his hand in time after all. Using her arms, she crawled over closer to him, guessing that whatever magic blast she had produced was responsible for the state of his unconsciousness.

"What happened?" Snow's worried implorations fought for her attention and she reluctantly looked back and saw her mother quickly wipe away tears that had been streaming down her face, sitting across from her on the floor. Pinocchio was standing behind her, a red streak running down the side of his face from his temple, along with her dad and the Blue Fairy hovering in the air. Her dad took an authoritative step closer to them. "Are _you_ okay?" Charming repeated sternly.

"No," Emma automatically answered, but she quickly furrowed her eyebrows when she realized her body was telling her the exact opposite. She felt perfectly normal except for maybe a splitting headache. "Yes," she corrected confusedly, "Rumplestiltskin put the poison back into my system," Emma searched their faces for answers, "I don't know what happened."

"You healed yourself," the Blue Fairy said after a moment with some amazement in her voice.

Emma blinked in surprise, gaping up at her. "How?"

"Your magic stems from true love. It's very powerful and very pure," the Blue Fairy explained, floating toward her in the air, "And the pulse you created traveled almost over the entire kingdom. It pushed away a lot of dark magic," she smiled gratefully before adding somberly, "At least for now."

"And where does healing myself fit into that?" Emma reiterated, trying to not be too pushy about getting to the point.

"Whatever you conjured must have been strong enough to inflict on yourself," the fairy guessed, "Maybe subconsciously or maybe because the act of performing it stemmed from, what I presume," Blue nodded toward Killian's knocked out figure beside her, "was something selfless and true. Magic can still be a mystery to even the greatest wielders of it." Except that it always came with a price. And Emma suddenly felt like she was swallowing glass thinking that one of the people in the room would be the price for it one day.

"Wish I would have known that the first time around," Emma muttered under her breath; but she doubted she could have been able to summon up that amount of magic when she was originally poisoned, not when the power of her magic stemmed from her emotions, not when that had been the time she had been desolate over Killian leaving her after Neverland. Emma glanced around the room, noting its disheveled and wrecked appearance, along with the absence of the reason. "What about Rumplestiltskin?" she asked sharply, resisting the urge to turn Killian over or brush his hair back when her father kept eyeing her carefully.

"I came up here to look for you and made it just in time for the finale," Pinocchio answered dryly, wincing as his hand touched his temple, "I saw him _poof_ out of here before your _pulse_ hit him," his words rolled mockingly on the magic terms.

Emma rolled her lips together in thought, mumbling, "I wonder why." With a brief look back up at Pinocchio, she realized she must have knocked him out too and sighed a quick, "Sorry."

"The Dark One's magic is a curse," the Blue Fairy contended calmly, "I'm sure he didn't want to risk it."

Well, at least she knew that her magic was something he did _not_ want to get hit with, being true love and all. "He'll be back," Emma told them darkly. Of that she had no doubt.

"The fairies have already done all they can to secure the castle," the Blue Fairy announced reassuringly.

Snow nodded up at her, saying a warm "Thanks" before the fairy disappeared in a haze of violet blue.

Emma clutched at her head, trying to absorb this all in, before nodding her head toward the still passed out Killian. "Help me move him to the bed," Emma commanded softly, turning him over with the help of Snow.

"He's covered in blood," Snow suddenly stated as they got Killian rolled onto his back, looking up at Emma with growing anxious eyes, "Should we-"

"It's not his," Emma quickly interjected, a frown on her face, "it's mine." He was covered it in more than she realized. She had expected it on his hand, not all over the front of his vest and arms of his coat too. What exactly had he been doing, holding her while she was hacking up her insides? Emma watched as her father and Pinocchio lifted him up and carried him over to her bed, one of the only things not completely destroyed in her room, and sent her father an incredulous stare when he plopped Killian down on it without a hint of gentleness. Charming shrugged indifferently before he and Pinocchio dismissed themselves to go talk and explain to any of the remaining guests that might have lingered. Surprising Emma, the ball long forgotten in her mind. With a tired sigh, she rummaged through some of the wreckage, taking a moment to stare fondly at her old unicorn mobile, most of the glass pieces now shattered. From the corner of her eye, she saw her mother bend down and pick something up off the ground and with a sharp pang of guilt, Emma realized it was her tiara that must have fallen off sometime during the action.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize-" she began hurriedly.

Snow shook her head, a sad, small smile on her face. "It's fine," she chided, rubbing off some of the blood Emma was sure was on there, taking it with her as she walked out onto the balcony.

Emma quietly followed her out there, the red and orange light of dawn peeking over the horizon. "With everything's that's been going on," Snow said after a long moment, looking down at the tiara still, her voice filled with emotion, "I wanted you to have a perfect birthday."

She felt her heart sink at her mother's confession, and had no idea what to say, knowing that it was her fault any of this happened in the first place. In an attempt to lighten the mood and remembering Snow's own apprehension for her own birthday, Emma wryly quipped, "Birthdays don't really fare well for us, do they?"

Snow let out a sharp laugh. "I guess not," she agreed, turning to give her a watery smile and reaching up to cup her cheek.

Once her mother removed her hand, Emma took a deep breath, decidedly stating, "I'm going to Oz."

With a sigh, Snow's eyes went to the sky, mumbling, "I was afraid you were going to say that."

After some more negotiations, Emma made her way back inside her room only to find Killian still passed out on her bed. She rolled her eyes, must be needing to catch up on his beauty sleep too. Finding some rags, she removed the rings on his right hand and attempted to wipe some of the blood off. She had to admit, she was a little nervous of what his mood would be when he did wake up and she wanted to make it as less harsh as possible. He freaked when she went to go see Regina, she couldn't imagine what his choice words would be at her physically locking him out of a fight with Rumplestiltskin. When she was finished, she sat on the side of her bed near his waist, fiddling idly with the beading of her dress as she waited for him to wake up.

"Bloody hell," Killian's voice snapped her out of her reverie and she looked up and saw him glancing around her room with a bewildered expression.

She had to bite back a smile. "Finally," Emma dragged evenly.

He gave her an unimpressed smirk before looking her over intently. "Are you okay?" he asked concernedly.

"Yeah," she told him, smiling tentatively.

"Did the crocodile heal you?" Killian continued to probe, his demeanor more seething in an instant.

"No. I did," Emma muttered sheepishly, a little lost on how to explain something she still did not understand herself, "I, uh… shot out a pulse and it was strong enough to effect myself too," she rattled on, waving her fingers out for effect, "maybe subconsciously or something."

Killian tiredly sighed, closing his eyes as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why didn't you do that the first time?" he grumbled darkly.

"I didn't have the energy to do it before," Emma claimed, quick to defend herself. She locked eyes with him for a moment before whispering to her lap, the weight of their previous situations in her words, "And it tends get more amplified by my emotions." She nervously looked back up and was glad to see that he understood what she was trying to say.

After a moment, Killian curiously asked, "Then what happened to the crocodile?"

"Vanished, apparently," Emma explained absentmindedly, following his eyes around the room, "The Blue Fairy says the power of the Dark One is a curse. He didn't want to take the chance that my magic could break it."

"He's a coward," Killian replied scathingly, a hateful fieriness in his voice as he readjusted his position lying down, "He hides behind his magic."

"For someone so afraid to lose his magic," Emma mused, thinking on Rumplestiltskin's determination to get the heart in _favor_ of the curse being cast, "he's determined to go to a land where there's not any."

Killian paused before quietly confessing, "It's because his son is there."

"What?" Emma shockingly related, her eyebrows going up as she stared at him unbelievingly, "how do you know that?"

"Milah was his wife before he became the Dark One," Killian revealed, his eyes turning dark before adding sedately, "and the boy was in Neverland for a time."

She now understood Rumplestiltskin's apparent hatred toward him in the whole thing and put last night in a whole new light. Maybe it had been more about him than her. And she was having trouble imagining Rumplestiltskin with a _son_. Or even as a normal man. "That puts a new perspective on things," Emma murmured, still lost in thought.

"Aye."

"No wonder he wants the heart," Emma concluded solemnly. She wasn't a mother, but she was sure if she did have a kid, she wouldn't stop fighting to get back to them. "I don't know how many times I've heard him tell me how fated my 28th birthday is supposed to be," she confessed wryly with a dismissive eye roll.

"Is that when you're supposed to break the curse?" Killian asked interestedly.

"Yep."

"The savior," Killian lively asserted, suddenly beaming up at her with a grin on his face. There was a hint of smugness in it she could still see though.

"Why do you look so smug all of a sudden?" she challenged, narrowing her eyes in slight suspicion.

Killian shrugged nonchalantly, a much too innocent tone in his voice, "I'm still waiting to hear all about the kiss that woke me up."

Emma paused, trying to figure out what he was talking about, when she realized he was still under the impression that he _had_ drank whatever was in that vile and that he had been woken up with true love's kiss. Her stomach fluttered as she wondered whether that was because he knew her magic stemmed from being the product of true love or because… she didn't want to go there right now. Instead, she deadpanned, "It didn't."

"What?" Killian exclaimed, looking taken aback.

Emma stared at him incredulously, "You weren't cursed."

Killian stared right back at her, outrageously demanding, "Then what was in that blasted vial?"

"You never drank the vial," Emma informed him tartly, "I shot it out of your hand before you could."

"Then why did I just wake up?" Killian continued to heatedly argue, unconvinced, and waved a frantic hand toward the window, "it's practically dawn."

"The magic knocked you out. It knocked _me_ out," Emma dictated, doing her best not to laugh at his expression.

Killian opened his mouth like he was going to continuing arguing before he snapped it shut in a frustrated huff, looking disgruntled. "There goes the 'I can't believe you would sacrifice yourself for me' 'I almost died' sex I had been counting on," he muttered irritability with an eye roll.

"_Counting_ on?" Emma repeated blithely, raising a slight eyebrow.

"A man can dream," Killian retorted indignantly. Glancing down at his hand, he uncurled his fist with a puzzled expression on his face, asking, "Where are my rings?"

"Oh," Emma said, grabbing them out of her lap to hold for him, "here." Killian kept staring at her expectantly, a smirk on his face, as he held up his hand and wiggled his fingers indicating that she should put them on. Emma rolled her eyes, but begrudgingly obliged to his request. "I took them off to clean your hand," she explained sedately, keeping her eyes on his hand as she slipped the rings on, her insides coiling from the anticipation of diving into the darker territory she knew was coming, "I figured you didn't want to wake up with dried blood all over it."

Once she was finished, there was a tense silence as she felt Killian studying her. "You look nervous," he mused demurely.

Emma threw her head back, suppressing a groan. "I'm bracing myself for the lecture that you've probably been monologuing in your head since I pushed you out onto the balcony," she muttered, her voice dark and insides filling with guilt.

Killian sat up and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. The intensity of his vibrant blue eyes left her breathless. "I don't think I have it in me at the moment," he whispered, his fingers moving up to trace over her cheek. Killian rested his forehead on her shoulder and sighed, sending his hot breath tickling over her neck. "You should have told me," he murmured as his lips brushed over her collarbone.

"And you would have done what exactly?" Emma ventured, moving her arms around his shoulders, knowing he was referring to having a deal with Rumplestiltskin. And though he was letting everything that had happened go now, she knew the next time there was some threat looming toward them, he was going to use this against her.

"Well I could have been spared some moments of real panic that you were finally rejecting me once and for all," Killian jeered lightly as he straightened up to be facing her again, but she could the seriousness behind the forced bravado, "I was seconds away from throwing myself at your feet and not removing myself until you told me what was necessary to even begin to form the possibility for you to consider otherwise." He suddenly pressed his lips to hers, pulling her into a fervent kiss. Her head started buzzing and her veins filled with a consuming heat.

Breaking away from him as little as possible, Emma breathlessly uttered, "Right after I practically attacked you?"

Killian grinned against her lips. "A goodbye kiss," he conceded bemusedly before immediately kissing her hungrily once more.

After a moment, she rested her forehead against his, sighing, "I was afraid it would be."

"If your father hadn't rudely interrupted, it would have turned into a much more _significant_ goodbye," Killian said suggestively, waggling his eyebrows.

She didn't have the heart to tell him it had really been Rumplestiltskin. Emma threw him an unimpressed look, trying to hide her amusement. "I want to go with you," she suddenly stated more seriously, thoughts of the night before leveling her mood.

Killian closed his eyes, beginning, "Don't-"

"No, I do," Emma reassured fiercely, that had been the only answer she had been trying to give him during that whole ordeal. Before she could lose her never, she tentatively admitted, "I've been waiting for you to ask me ever since you agreed to go."

For the second time, Killian pinched the bridge of his nose and frustratingly growled, "You should have just said something."

"Like what?" Emma countered back defensively.

"You see, darling," Killian replied loftily, "I was under the assumption that you had always been coming with me until _you_ made it clear that it was just me going."

She tried not to look too sheepish. What was that saying about assumptions…? Emma shook her head, forcing herself to focus. "Well, my parents do have one condition," she added with a slight wince.

"I'm over 300 years old and I still find myself at the mercy of a girl's parents," Killian deadpanned.

She snorted a laugh, coolly admitting, "I'm surprised you've had any experience with parents, actually."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Killian sneered indignantly.

"You're not exactly known for being the pinnacle of respect and virtue," Emma insolently remarked.

"Oh, the _pirate_ thing," Killian chided, his eyes going wide in emphasis.

Giving him a pointed look, Emma mockingly repeated, "Yeah, the _pirate_ thing."

"Some life experiences are impossible to avoid, darling," he countered superciliously, giving her a look of offense.

Biting the inside of her cheek, Emma shook her head. "They just want to keep the hat here with them, guarded, until we get back," she informed him.

"Oh," Killian blinked, surprised, "that's perfectly alright. I feared promises to keep my… hand off of you," he continued on dramatically, his hand moving down and squeezing the side of her waist pointedly, "or an overbearing nanny of some sort they would force to come with us to make sure of it," Killian's mouth moved to her ear, his voice low and suggestive, "one we would get rid of within seconds of arriving, of course," he bit down on her earlobe, sending shivers down her spine, before pulling back with wide, horrified eyes, "or worst of all, a cursed magical chastity belt."

"That's not a bad idea, Hook," Charming suddenly growled from the doorway, causing Emma to jump and almost fall off the bed.

Killian seemed unfazed. "It's a good thing I love a challenge," he alluded, raising his eyebrows.

"Watch it," Emma warned under her breath and cast him a dark look, wanting to will him to stop all provocations she knew were coming. He couldn't resist getting a rise out of people.

"I still have some…" Charming announced sternly, walking into the room with a withering glare directed at Killian, "reservations, about this whole thing."

Emma lowered her head into her hand, mumbling, "Why am I not surprised?"

"Charming," Snow chastised lightly, trailing in behind him, "there's actually some more things pertaining to the Kingdom we wanted to talk to you about."

Killian leaned back against the headboard of her bed, stretching his right arm lazily behind his head. "I'm all ears," he conveyed with a haughty smirk.

Charming shook his head, looking pointedly at Killian, "I don't think-"

"He stays," Emma commanded, her voice flat and unyielding. It's not like he wouldn't find a way to listen in on their conversation anyway.

Killian winked at her, quipping, "Thanks for the support, love."

"Listen here, Hook-" Charming started to threateningly growl.

"Emma, there is a lot going on in the Kingdom right now, as I'm sure you are well aware," Snow interjected loudly, sending Charming a warning glare, "You've done a lot in defending it and you being gone could pose a threat to some chaos."

Emma listened and watched her mother carefully. "What are you saying?"

"Your magic isn't a secret anymore and I'm just warning you not to be gone too long," Snow elaborated carefully, her eyes fierce and deliberate.

She nodded at her mother, trying not to read much into it. She and Killian were only gone for two days when they went to Neverland, but which apparently had turned out to be a week in the Enchanted Forest. Surely this trip would amount to relatively the same. Plus, they still had another meeting with Regina to get through. They couldn't leave without getting that spell taken off his hook. "Do you want to get cleaned up?" Emma mindfully asked Killian, standing up off the bed.

Killian looked down at his coat and vest with a frown, seeing her dried blood, but covered up his dismay with a jest, "This coat _does_ happen to be vintage."

Emma stared pointedly at her father, who was trying his best to avoid her eyes. When he finally did, he threw her an incredulous look and Emma just raised her eyebrows expectantly at him. Sighing, Charming glowered darkly and reluctantly commanded, "Follow me." Killian grinned wickedly and sent her a wink before he followed her father out of the room and Emma hoped that she did not just make a big mistake by forcing those two to be alone together. Remembering that it was probably a good idea to change the bandage on her arm and the mysterious man responsible for it, Emma curiously asked Snow, "Who was that man in the purple?"

"What man?" Snow inquired, a puzzled expression on her face.

"Last night, there was a man in a dark purple suit. He ran into me," Emma explained, holding up her arm, "He seemed familiar. I was wondering who he was."

Snow rolled her lips in contemplation before she slowly shook her head, confessing, "I don't remember seeing anyone like that."

"Really?" Emma mumbled, more to herself, as she studied her arm, lost in thought. The feelings of some unknown force coiling down to her toes.

"Is something wrong?" Snow implored, her voice laced with rising suspicion.

"Nothing," Emma dismissively jabbered, clutching her head in hopes of getting rid of whatever had just taken over her, "just forget about it."

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"Why are you taking me down here?" Emma questioned again as Killian led her down into the mines where Rumplestiltskin's cell was.

Killian sighed. "It's a surprise," he repeated tiredly, giving her the same answer and pointed look as before.

"I hate surprises," Emma muttered irately under her breath.

"That's a shame for you then," Killian quipped lightly, no sympathy at all in his voice.

After another moment of walking, she was getting fed up with waiting, Emma groaned, "Seriously-"

"Oh before I forget," Killian interjected, stopping them abruptly and turning to give her a formulating smile, "I still haven't given you your birthday present yet."

"You did not get me present," Emma stated flatly, her chest filling with nervous dread. She hated getting presents, having kept her walls up too much to be able to give a proper reaction or thanks, making the other person upset or disappointed.

"Of course I did," Killian replied indignantly, looking slightly offended, "Isn't that the customary thing to do on birthdays?"

Maybe if you were someone who actually liked birthdays. "Yeah, but-"

"I'd hoped to give it to you last night," Killian said wistfully, ignoring her glare for interrupting her again. "Another mark against the crocodile," he hissed under his breath before forcing a smile and airily continuing on, "But instead of waiting another year for it to roll around again, now will have to do."

"What is it?" Emma immediately inquired.

Killian stared at her with amused exasperation. "It's a surprise," he repeated incredulously, trying to hide a grin.

"You're doing this on purpose," Emma hotly accused, narrowing her eyes. All this anticipation was making her stomach burn.

"Someone has to teach you some patience, love," Killian caustically intoned with a smirk. He cleared his throat, ordering, "Close your eyes."

"What?" Emma snapped, eyes going wide with disbelief, "No. Why?" she demanded skeptically.

"It's not wrapped," Killian replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Emma sent him a sharp look. "So?"

"The presentation is one of the most important parts," Killian argued outrageously.

"No."

"_Emma_."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine," Emma conceded begrudgingly, closing her eyes and sticking out her hand. After hearing rustling noises, she snapped her fist back into her chest, "no, wait."

"Gods," Killian growled frustratingly and then cursed, "one would think I was asking you to walk the plank in mermaid infested waters."

"Okay, sorry," Emma mumbled apologetically, her eyes still closed, "I'm ready," she breathed confidently, holding out her open hand again. There was a long stretch of silence where nothing happened and she felt nothing in her hand. After shaking it twice for attention, there was still nothing. "Now what is it?" she said. She was _not_ whining.

"Nothing, I just thought I would let you suffer some as well," Killian deadpanned.

"I hate you."

"I know," he replied, a smile in his voice. She opened her eyes when she felt something cool slide onto her hand.

"It's beautiful," Emma breathed in amazement, looking down at the antique looking necklace. It was gold and circular, the crevices of the design faded into black, but it was the center that caught her eyes and made it something she distinctly recognized the piece from Killian's ship, it glowed bright blue and almost looked like the iris of an eye, and seemed to glow brighter in her hand, "I remember this."

"I brought it back with us when I saw you liked it, just in case," Killian said, shrugging nonchalantly. When Emma sent him a look of puzzlement, he mockingly retorted, "you never know when an apology won't be enough." Emma rolled her eyes and hit him on the arm. Like she could ever be bribed with jewelry. Killian chuckled and added a little proudly, "I swiped it off a princess long ago," he took a moment to furrow his brows in thought, "maybe even before I met Milah."

"Watch it end up being my great, great, great grandmother you stole it from or something," Emma teased, snickering slightly.

Killian froze for a split second. His jaw jutted out as he shook his head wearily, saying, "You just made me feel entirely too old."

"Are you sure it's not those grey hairs?" Emma mused seriously, narrowing her eyes in concentration as she picked at his hair.

His hand immediately flew up to his hair. "What?"

"Kidding," she chided lightly, a satisfied smirk forming on her face.

"Not funny," Killian whispered, grinning nonetheless before his lips descended on hers. His tongue traced her lips, demanding entrance and when she allowed it, the taste of him left her dizzy. And if she didn't stop now, she wasn't going to be able to. She forced herself to pull back from him, groaning, "Time for the real reason we came down here."

Ignoring her, his lips trailed down her neck, stopping to suck lightly on her pulse point. "Or we could just finish what we started the last time we were down here," Killian suggested, his voice husky as his teeth and tongue began to further his point. Emma involuntarily leaned further into him and tilted her head back to give him more access, all her reasons for protest flying from her mind. Her hand moved to his hair and when he bit down on her collarbone, it sent an electrifying jolt through her. No matter how absorbed she was, there was still some small nagging in the back of her mind.

"No, I want to know," she insisted breathlessly, having to physically step away from him to keep her resolve.

Killian bowed his head in defeat. "If you insist," he reluctantly grumbled and then motioned them further toward the cell.

When they made it to the cell, it looked perfectly normal and untouched. "I don't see anything," Emma announced, trying not to feel frustrated.

"Just to be certain," Killian mused into her ear, standing behind her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her flush to him, "you're absolutely positive there is no chance of being seen or heard down here, correct?"

"Yes," Emma replied, her voice coming out uncertainly now as a rush of heat poured through her, her eyes falling closed.

Nibbling on her earlobe, Killian murmured, "It's in there."

"Where?" Emma stammered shakily, her breathing uneven when fingers started to trace slow circles down her stomach.

His lips began to move down her neck and she let her head loll back on his shoulder. Of course she felt the bastard smirk against her skin, "In the cell."

She forced her eyes open to glace around the empty cell again. "_Where_?" she repeated as strongly as she could, taking every last bit of self control to stay focused. She wasn't even sure why she asking 'where' any more when she didn't even know what was suppose to be in there. Killian moved away from her without warning, startling her, and walked into the corner of the cell. He reached into a crevice and pulled out a small, brown satchel.

He didn't have to open it for her to suddenly know what it was. "The heart," she whispered in realization, walking over to him. "Why here?" Emma asked curiously.

"You're the only person I trust with it," Killian replied with a shrug, "and if the dire need ever arise, I wanted to make sure you could get to it in a relatively quick amount of time."

With a quick glance around the cave, she knew there wasn't a chance anyone would still discover it down here. But _if_ , like he said, that dire need arise, it would be too easy to get cornered here if someone followed her. "Should we move it somewhere else just to be safe?"

"If you think so."

Emma took the satchel from him, studying contemplatively. "I think I might have a better place for it," she surmised absentmindedly.

"Then we'll move it there," Killian moved his down to her waist to pull her closer, his eyes gleaming wickedly, "You ready to travel to Oz, darling?"

She looked up at him, her own smirk forming on her face, "You have no idea."

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A/N: Well, Killian and Emma remotely happy for one chapter at least! Things will start getting bumpy again in the next one.

Four things about the chapter: unlike she thinks, Emma and Killian will definitely be gone longer than a week; one of the people in the room that Emma wakes up to will die before the story's over, thus paying the price for the amount of magic she had to do; that necklace is more important that Killian realizes; the man in the purple that bumped into her wasn't Rumplestiltskin. Any guesses?

I hope everyone liked it and please review if you can! I would really appreciate it.

Love you all!

**Next chapter summary:** Things go awry when Emma and Killian attempt to question their first lead on the powder, forcing them to realize that maybe they've been too wrapped up in each other and not searching as much as they should; Emma feels something urgent is summoning her back to the Enchanted Forest, leaving Emma and Killian at odds when she wants to go back alone.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

It's been awhile! I apologize for that, I just got really busy with school/exams, I didn't have time to write! But not it is summer and I have plenty :) Thanks for sticking with me! Welcome to Oz :)

And thanks to the lovely niniadepapa for being my beta for this chapter!

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**Chapter Fifteen**

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Emma sprinted as fast as she could across the roof of one of the buildings in the Emerald City. She and Killian had gone somewhat undercover when they had finally gotten a lead on the powder. To put it lightly, things hadn't exactly gone according to plan. She scaled down the side of the building, landing on the cobbled street below with a thud, and took off running again. She wasn't headed anywhere in particular, but she and Killian had gotten separated sometime during their flee, and she was going to keep going in circles until she found him.

As if said pirate could read her thoughts, she was suddenly grabbed from behind and pulled into an old abandoned building. The windows were bordered up with wood planks, leaving just enough space that someone could peek out of it. She knew it was Killian without even having to look. He pulled her over to him, keeping his arm around her as he watched for any movement out of the window.

"They're gone," Killian said after a few minutes of watching. He kissed the top of her head, "Let's go."

"You just had to keep pushing, didn't you?" Emma grumbled at him before they got to the door to leave. She was the one who was suppose to go in there and charm the man into getting the information they knew he had regarding the powder, _alone_. But in true pirate form, Killian impulsively decided to improvise.

Killian glared at her indignantly. "He was holding back."

"Of course he was," Emma hissed, not as angry as she was exasperated, "thanks to you."

"I wouldn't have had to intervene if your _charms_ weren't so bloody convincing," Killian countered, accusation and annoyance in his voice.

"You told me to flirt with him!" Emma shot back incredulously, poking him in the chest. She couldn't believe he was trying to put this on her, the whole thing had been his idea in the first place.

Killian flexed his jaw, sending her a dark look as he reluctantly grumbled, "Well watching it was a tad more difficult than I expected."

With that, he grabbed the top of her arm and pulled her forward, indicating that the coast was clear. "You've got to be kidding me," Emma muttered under her breath at him, keeping a hold of his hand as they tried to maneuver through the dark streets without being seen.

As they stealthily made their way back to the small apartment where they had been staying, they only ran into one of the men the rich business man they had tricked had sent after them. Killian quickly took care of him and they sprinted back to the building where they lived for the time being, the moonlight their only source of light.

They shut the door of their room, both breathing heavy and leaning against it, relieved to be back. And then before she knew it, Killian had her lifted up and pinned against the wall, kissing her like there was no tomorrow. She wrapped her legs tightly around his waist, pulling him closer. There were a few more minutes and hot, frenzied kisses and touching before they managed to get both of their clothes off, and when he finally slid into her, Emma was completely lost in him, just like she had been the entire time they had been in Oz.

After and when they had moved back to the bed, Emma remained seated on his lap, her arms wrapped around him comfortably. She leaned her head against his shoulder and surprised herself when she found that she couldn't stop herself from laughing. "What's so funny?" Killian asked, leaning over to kiss her, an amused lilt in his voice.

"You," Emma replied simply, pulling back to look at him with a teasing grin on her face.

Killian raised an eyebrow at her. "And what exactly have I done to amuse you?" he mused, his grin now matching hers.

"I can't believe you were jealous," Emma said, unable to stop the smugness that started to fill her demeanor. She replayed the look on his face again in her head and had to stifle another laugh. Trying to flirt with that man had been almost worse than watching Grumpy stare longingly at that fairy he always talked about.

"I wasn't… jealous," Killian claimed, sending her an eye roll before airily quipping, "What's mine is mine."

"Is that right?" Emma smirked, raising her eyebrow skeptically.

"You have no room to talk, darling," Killian countered knowingly, shaking his head at her, but still with a smile on his face as he teased, "As I recall, you stormed out of a tavern in Neverland because I happened to get a few free drinks from a particular red-headed barmaid."

Emma sent him an unimpressed look. "I was _not_ jealous," she objected sternly, because she _wasn't_, not really… He brought the incident too many times anyway and seemed way too proud about it, also, "and calmly left because I wanted to see more of Neverland than just the inside of a run down tavern."

Killian clearly didn't buy it. With a haughty smirk on his face, he contended, "Whatever helps you sleep at night, love."

She hit his shoulder playfully, causing him to chuckle, before they were quiet for a few more moments. Tonight had been a close call, for both of them. It had been a half-hearted attempt to find any information about the powder; actually, the whole trip so far had been half-hearted. They had spent the entire time they had been there focused on everything _but_ finding the powder. "We should have been more careful tonight," Emma said, her voice quiet and subdued.

"It's over and done with," Killian said, waving his hand indifferently, "We got what we needed." Emma gave him a dubious look so he begrudgingly conceded, "…eventually."

"Which is still not a lot," Emma countered bleakly. It was a name. Nothing more. A person they would have to find in a world that wasn't theirs.

"It's enough," Killian replied, his voice reassuring as he placed a finger under her chin and forced her to look at him, "Emma, love, we will find the powder."

The look of determination and confidence in his eyes made her heart melt and nervous at the same time, so she just rolled her eyes, unable to look at him again. Forcing out a laugh, she quipped, "Since we've been trying so hard."

Underneath her jest, though, she was serious. There were days when they were so consumed with just being together they didn't even leave the room. It was beginning to feel like they were on some sort of extended vacation instead of a mission that was suppose to be a matter of life or death. Killian seemed to sense her hesitancy. With a waggle of his eyebrows, he leaned over to whisper huskily in her ear, "You've been doing something _hard_, at least, darling."

Emma stifled a laugh, he was seriously incorrigible, and playfully hit his shoulder, reprimanding, "I'm serious, Killian."

"There's not anything else we can do until tomorrow," Killian sighed, his hand trailing up and down her arm. She knew he was right. The tight bundle of nerves that had made its way into her stomach was still protesting, though. He suddenly shifted so that he hovered over her, his lips descending over her collarbone. "So in the meantime…" Killian's low voice suggestively trailed off as his lips moved even further down. Emma relented, her senses overriding any logic going through her brain, and she could already tell it was going to be another long night.

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* * *

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Emma woke up the next morning, facing Killian and tucked so much into his chest that he was practically on top of her. She glanced up at him, only to see that he was still sound asleep. It was hard for her not to just lay there and stare at him, since the only time his face ever looked truly relaxed and carefree was when he was asleep. There were no furrowed brows, no lines of anger and hatred carried for a certain crocodile, no hidden darkness in his eyes from a past she still longed to understand. None of the pieces of him that always seemed to be just out of reach from her, and perhaps always would.

Trying to ignore the sickening feeling that seemed to weigh in her stomach, Emma carefully pried herself from his arms and got out of bed. There were better things for her to do than lay there and be consumed with thoughts she didn't want to have. She halted mid-retreat when she heard Killian mutter something with a frown on his face, but his stirring soon stopped and with a heaving sigh, she made her way into their apartment's kitchen area, sitting down at the small table with her head in her hands.

Last night had shaken her up. Which was understandable, considering the circumstances, but now there was this knot in her stomach that seemed to be pulsing with anxiety, like it was trying to tell her something was wrong, but what exactly that might be, she had no clue. She didn't know why she would suddenly start feeling this worried over something. It was the exact opposite of what she had been feeling since they'd been here.

"Emma?" Killian's tense voice echoed from the bedroom, making her jump. She took a moment to let her heartbeat slow back down before heaving herself out of her chair. Walking back into the other room, she saw Killian halfway out of bed. He's had been reaching for his pants, looking slightly frazzled and anxious.

"What's wrong?" Emma immediately asked, her eyes furrowing in concern. Killian halted his movements and gave her an annoyed look before sighing and plopping back down across the bed. Emma stood there, waiting for an answer, but Killian remained silent, his arm propped on his forehead as he glared at the ceiling. "What?" she reiterated with some exasperation.

"I told you to wake me up if you went anywhere," Killian criticized sharply, his eyes still fixed on the ceiling.

Throwing a hand toward the kitchen, Emma indignantly argued, "I didn't go anywhere, I was in the other room."

"That is somewhere," Killian snapped, his glare now fully directed at her. Emma blinked, taken aback by his reaction, before guilt started to bubble up in her stomach as she realized what was going on. She knew he had nightmares, and that they had seemed to get worse if she wasn't there, that much he had told her. It was something they had talked about before. Not that he had actually told her what they were about, though. He always changed the subject before she could get it out of him. But it was not like she could be angry at him about it. She was still keeping things from him too.

A guilty look on her face, Emma rolled her lips together and made her way over to the bed. He was staring up at the ceiling again so she just quietly laid on the bed beside him, curled up on her side. "You can go back to sleep if you want, I'm not going anywhere," she murmured, studying his profile, wishing that she could make them stop somehow.

Killian shook his head, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "I'm up now," he grumbled under his breath.

"What was it about?" Emma asked quietly after a long moment of silence, knowing he would know what she was talking about and vainly hoping he would finally answer her.

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours," Killian replied as he glanced over at her searchingly.

It took her a minute to come up with an answer, completely surprised by the turn of the conversation because he usually shut her down, but also feeling hopeful at the prospect of him opening up to her. "Mine?" Emma stammered confusedly, her brows furrowed.

"The one you were having when I came back to you," Killian turned on his side to face her, his fingers moving up to the edge of her hair, "I think you still have it sometimes. You never told me."

She paused, surprised that he remembered that or was even still concerned about it. It seemed like another lifetime ago, one where she was determined to have nothing ever to do with him again, one where she was so hurt she wished he would have never come into her life. If someone back then would have told her this was where she would have ended up… Did she really still relive that nightmare? She never remembered having it again, but it was one that always seemed to haunt her when she was alone. Emma swallowed hard, trying to regain her composure, and had to clear her throat a bit before finally saying, "The Enchanted Forest is burning and there's nothing I can do to stop it." She took a deep breath and leaned into him, pressing her head against his chest. "I'm all alone and then a man appears," Emma involuntarily shuddered, the image of his piercing eyes was still in her brain and she felt Killian's arm wrap around her as he pulled her closer, "He has these piercing yellow eyes and he has magic, and it's almost the complete opposite of mine," Emma mused, voice faraway. Something in her memory itched at her to remember. Something about the magic felt familiar to her now that she looked back. She shook her head in an attempt to clear her thoughts. "It's stifling, but then you appear," she added with a slight smile on her face, hating the way her voice had started to crack, "and I had kept hearing your voice, but now I think that was you trying to wake me up. Somehow I find the strength to stand, and I tell you to run, that I'll fight him off, but you don't move. I push you away, but the second I do, the man blasts you away," Emma confessed, her voice now wavering. Damn it. The last thing she wanted to do was cry. Especially in front of him. Taking a deep breath through her nostrils, she continued, "I fall to my knees and the man starts coming toward me and I know I'm going to die." Her words came out as quick as possible and she hurriedly wiped a tear from her eyes and vainly hoped that he hadn't noticed. "Okay, now your turn," Emma ordered, pulling away from him slightly so that she could look at him.

Killian abruptly sat up, turning to look down at her with a determined expression, "I want you to promise me something."

"Killian…" Emma trailed off, already sensing where his thoughts were going.

She had started to bury herself into her pillow when he grabbed her arm and made her sit up beside him. "Promise me that you won't sacrifice yourself in some kind of attempt to save the Enchanted Forest or in a fight that's not even yours," Killian pleaded, staring her down intensely, "Just because you're suppose to be the savior, doesn't mean you have to be. It doesn't mean you have to be the one to die for it."

The promise was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. Because she couldn't promise him that. Not if her dying meant that she would save the people she loved. "I can't promise that," Emma told him hoarsely.

That definitely wasn't the answer he wanted. "Yes you can," Killian proclaimed vehemently, his jaw clenched.

"Not when the Enchanted Forest includes my parents... and you-" Emma began to argue, her voice rising with conviction. There was no way she would be able to live with herself if she just let the people she loved die.

"I'm not worth it," Killian interjected briskly, cutting her off. His words felt like a stab to her gut, "and your parents wouldn't want you dying either."

"That's not fair," Emma croaked, sending him a dark look. Because he _was_ worth it. He was worth everything to her. "Especially when I know you wouldn't do the same," she added crossly. She knew without a doubt he would be exploding in anger if she were trying to get him to promise the same thing, if she were saying the same things about herself.

"I'm not the one who is in some prophecy about a final battle," Killian shot back testily, his mood visibly darkening at her every attempt to argue back.

"Well the curse didn't happen," Emma stated smartly, glaring him down, "so it doesn't matter."

Killian shot her a blithe look before continuing, "But what if-"

Emma cut him off, heatedly musing, "Are you planning on letting Regina get her hands on that heart sometime in the near future?"

His eyes wide, Killian sneered indignantly, "Of course not."

"Then drop it," Emma snapped irately.

After rolling his head back against the headboard, still clearly wanting to argue his point, he finally turned to her with a defeated look on his face. Killian conceded, "Just promise me you'll try, at least."

"Fine," Emma muttered, not really meaning it. There was no way she would save herself over him if given the choice. Or let innocent people die because of her. Her being the savior might have been a bunch of nonsense she had heard all her life, but she had lost too much because of it. She hated talking about it and she hated how Killian always wanted to. "Now your turn," she requested, wanting to change the subject.

Killian sighed tiredly, quietly murmuring, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes," Emma exclaimed incredulously. There was no way she was letting him off the hook now… so to speak.

"They're never the same," he stated, not looking at her, his words quickening so much that she could barely understand him, "like yours, just different scenarios of you dying and nothing I can do to stop it." Emma opened her mouth to speak but Killian interjected with a dark, silencing look, "don't ask me to specify that."

A warm feeling spread through her at the thought of him being that worried about her, but she immediately chided herself for thinking like that when it was something that obviously bothered him. Not needing to say anything, Emma curled her body up next him and rested her head against his chest, smiling when his arm moved to wrap around her, his hand lightly tracing lines on her back. After a few more minutes of laying there with him, Emma mumbled, "We need to get up."

Killian sighed and rubbed at his eyes, grumbling, "Why?"

"We need to find the powder. We need to go back soon," Emma declared, her voice pleading as she tried to convince him to listen to her. He threw his hand down on the bed, forceful enough to get her attention and noticed that he was staring up at the ceiling again. "Stop trying to avoid it," Emma instructed with some annoyance, "we've been here almost eight weeks."

It had definitely been an amazing eight weeks, but amazing for the reasons they weren't even there for. Her mother's words before they had left were suddenly ringing in her ears and she couldn't get them out. "Exactly," Killian argued, a mischievous glint in his eyes like he knew where her thoughts were, "why the sudden rush to get back?"

"Because that's where our lives are," Emma told him, exasperation filling her voice. She looked up and saw him giving her a dark and dubious look. "Don't give me that look," she warned, trying to send him her own glare, but guilt still started to make its way into her chest nonetheless.

Killian tried to pull her closer. "Maybe I just like having you all to myself," he whispered, but she could still hear the edge in his voice, "I didn't realize that was so wrong."

"It's not," she said quietly. The festering knot of nerves that had been in her stomach all morning suddenly flared up, so much so that Emma had to lay back on the bed and slow her breathing in order to keep calm. What the hell was wrong with her? She knew she was anxious about wanting to get back, but not to the point where it felt like it was crippling her.

"Don't you dare," Killian growled, thinking she was pulling away from him, as he rolled back over and on top of her. "Emma, look at me," he softly ordered as he grabbed her chin, eyes full of concern, "What's going on?"

Emma took another deep breath, reaching a hand up to rub her forehead. "I don't know," she replied, completely honest, trying to hide the panic that was starting to creep up inside of her.

"Everything's going to be fine," he whispered gently, his lips descending on hers as he reassured, "We'll go back as soon as we can." She started to fervently kiss him back, hoping that would make everything disappear like it usually did, but her heart jolted and constricted painfully in her chest, causing her to cry out. Something was wrong. Something was really wrong. Killian pulled back, but her eyes had reflexively scrunched close and it was taking all her strength to keep breathing. "Emma?" Killian's concerned voice was faint as she was suddenly taken somewhere else.

_There was fire everywhere. And panic. It was _home_. Something was wrong at home. Her mother's face flooded her vision, she was writhing in pain…_

And then it ended. Feeling groggy, Emma slowly opened her eyes and found that she was back in their room in Oz with Killian. Realizing that the top half of her body was now dressed, she squinted down and saw Killian trying to pull up her pants. "What are you doing?" she mumbled, still a little disoriented.

Killian's eyes darted up to her, looking disheveled and panicked. He bowed his head as he let out a deep breath. "What the hell just happened?" he demanded after he composed himself, moving up so that his face was level with hers, his hand brushing back her hair, "are you okay?"

"Yeah," Emma muttered dismissively, feeling embarrassed, but touched, at his concern. Her vision hit her like a ton of bricks and her eyes shot open as she tried to sit up and move off the bed as quick as possible. "No, something's wrong, I need to get home," Emma said worried and fearful. Something was wrong, that much she knew. She had to get home as soon as possible. Her heart racing, she noted with confusion once more that she was already almost fully clothed. "You were putting my clothes on?" Emma asked, her brows furrowed as she reiterated her question from earlier. What the hell had he been doing?

"Excuse me for wanting to protect your modesty before I sent for the doctor," Killian snapped, something normally she would have been mad at, but she knew he hated not knowing what was going on. She hurriedly pulled up the rest of her pants and once they were buckled, he grabbed her wrist, demanding her attention. "Not so fast," he growled, eyes focused anxiously on her, "Something's wrong with you?"

"No, not me," Emma said reassuringly, shaking her head, "My parents, I think. I felt this pang in my chest and then there were all these flashes…" her voice trailed off as the confusing images flashed before her eyes again. The only other time she had felt that kind of pain before was when Regina had stuck her hand in her chest, and when she had stuck her hand in Killian's when she had been watching. "I know that something is wrong," Emma said, her voice determined and panicked.

"Okay," Killian replied, still looking confused but wanting to help, "we'll go."

No. They hadn't found the powder. And Regina was nothing but cruel. If they both showed up in the Enchanted Forest with nothing, she would do something to retaliate. They were looking, but she wouldn't see that. She would think they were tricking her in an attempt to save their own lives. Killian had to stay in Oz to reassure her that they were still looking. She could handle Regina, she would have to look at her and know that she was telling the truth if she left Killian here. Because there was not a chance that she would just leave him here willingly or without a reason. "No," Emma breathed, already looking up at him apologetically. Her heart was already throbbing. He was going to be so mad at her for this.

"But you just said-" Killian insisted confusedly, his arms plopping down to his sides in frustration.

"You can't go," Emma relayed painfully to him, "you have to stay."

There was a long pause. "Come again?" Killian asked, blinking multiple times while giving Emma a look that clearly said he must have heard her wrong.

"We're so close to finding the powder," Emma explained desperately, trying to convince herself as much as him. She was right, though. This was the only way to keep him safe. It was their only chance to find the powder, also. "You have to find that man before someone warns him and disappears and then we're back to square one. Besides, Regina will kill you if we both come back without anything," she added desperately, "She'll think we've been lying to her. At least with you here, she'll know that we're still looking."

"No," Killian stated, his voice quiet, but the coldness and finality the radiated off of him was so intense it was almost suffocating.

Emma ignored him. "We'll knock out a Munchkin to take with me and then bring him back through with me," she ranted, her words coming out fast as different plans flew through her head, "It'll be fine. I'll just go see if everything's okay and then come straight back-"

"I said no," Killian roared, his voice echoing off the walls of the room, making her stop her movements completely. His turbulent and vexed demeanor made her see red. How dare he think he could just _order_ her around. Or that's what she was telling herself he was doing.

"This decision isn't up to you," Emma spat, her anger rising to match his, "It's _mine_. It's my _family_."

"And I couldn't give a rat's ass about them," Killian scathingly replied, his words cutting her deeply, "It's only your life I have any interest in."

Her anger flared even more. She was so glad he had an _interest_. "I said I wouldn't go for long," Emma fumed with disbelief, "What do you think is going to happen?"

"Would you prefer the short or the long version?" Killian spat with biting sarcasm, taking a step toward her, "The list of people who want to kill us grows every day, it's hard to keep track."

Emma crossed her arms defiantly, giving him a indignant look, "I think I can handle myself for a day."

"We go together," Killian ordered determinately, his voice fierce and unwavering.

"No," Emma countered, frustrated, "you're safer here."

"I don't give a damn about my safety," Killian replied incredulously, glaring at her like she was daft.

"Well I do!" Emma vehemently bellowed, her voice turning hoarse and cracking, "So stop fighting me on this!"

Killian let out a short, mirthless chuckle as he waved his finger at her, coldly relaying, "That's really rich coming from the girl who has fought me on _everything_ since day one."

"I have not," Emma stubbornly protested, ignoring the nagging voice in her head that was telling her he was right.

"Besides," Killian sullenly continued on like he hadn't heard her, pointing a finger at her, "you owe me."

Emma scoffed, dubiously sputtering, "For what?"

"For blocking me out of your room and making me watch you almost kill yourself by trying to fight the crocodile," Killian bellowed, wrathful and enraged.

She would be lying if she said it didn't feel like a slap to the face. There was no regret or remorse in his features and she let out a short, humorless laugh. "How did I know you were going to use that against me one day?" Emma lowly spat venomously, adding, "And are you forgetting that you knocked me out and left me in the middle of nowhere without any explanation?" Her voice had risen considerably again, unable to control the emotion spewing out of her. Rehashing the memory only brought back the festering sting the betrayal had left her, but she couldn't help it. If he was going to bright up her past acts, she was going to bring up his. Emma acidly hissed, "We're _even_."

"Even?" Killian repeated, his eyes wild, "We're not anywhere bloody close to _even_," he snarled. Emma reflexively took a step back as he advanced toward her. Killian venomously roared, "Not when I still see your blood all over my hand every time I look at it."

His words made her flinch and she knew it wasn't like she didn't have this coming. The pain and desperation in his eyes almost made her cave, but the vision was still fresh in her memory and she couldn't just go on without knowing if her parents were okay. "I'm sorry," Emma apologized, her voice hoarse with everything that was always unsaid between them. The words seem to calm him briefly and he took a deep breath through his nose. "Killian," Emma hesitantly reached up and cupped his cheek, breathing a sigh of relief when he leaned into it, "please just trust me. Just give me one day to go and make sure everything's okay," she pleaded, "one day and then I'll come back."

"What if something really is wrong, hm?" Killian mused caustically, a subdued anger still radiating in his eyes, "What then?"

"I'll still come back," Emma stated confidently. She knew something was wrong, she could feel it, but there was no way she could just leave him in Oz for more than a day. Going for a day was already going to be hard enough, especially knowing that he was so angry at her about it.

"You're determined to go without me, aren't you, darling?" Killian said with a resigned sigh. He reached up and grabbed her hand that was still on his cheek, removing it, but still kept it in his grip, "You haven't listened to a word I've said."

"Yes I have," Emma softly objected, and she had, and she hated that she was upsetting him, "I swear I'll be back, no matter what," she promised and wryly quipped without thinking, "even if it does take my dying breath." As soon as the words were out of her mouth and she saw the look on his face, she immediately regretted it. "I'm kidding," Emma said with a little exasperation.

Killian glowered at her, his jaw clenched as he growled, "That isn't funny."

"I know, I'm sorry," she said, subdued, calmly reiterating, "It's just one day."

"One day," Killian repeated sternly. He studied her face calculatingly for a long moment before he slowly began to back away, still facing her. Killian pointed a finger at her, lowly warning, "Don't make me regret this, darling."

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* * *

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Emma stood behind Killian as he peeked around the corner of the alley they were hiding in. The streets of the Emerald City were bustling with various vendors and patrons as they waited for a lone Munchkin to make an appearance. It was the only thing they had been able to agree on all day. A Munchkin would be the easiest body for her to take; they were small and easier for her to carry, especially when she wouldn't kill anyone for this. They soon spotted a fiery, red-headed, middle-aged Munchkin male survey the streets for awhile when they decided he was it. She had tried to make a joke about gingers but Killian remained stoic and acted like he didn't even hear her. His bad mood was getting worse by the minute. "Where's the poppy powder?" Killian asked tersely, keeping his eyes on the wandering Munchkin.

She reached into their satchel, pulling out the small bag of powder and placing it in his outstretched hand. "Here – " Emma began to say, but was cut short when Killian snatched it from her and took off without another word. She repressed a sigh, biting her lip, her heart sinking. So he was definitely pissed and had no qualms about letting her know, which was typical of him, but it wasn't like she had any other choice. It was her family, she had to know if they were okay, but she didn't want to risk him in the process, either.

She casually walked to a different alley, trying to blend in as much as possible, and still had to wait a few more minutes before Killian arrived back with the now passed out man. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one had seen him before he unceremoniously dumped the Munchkin down in front to her. "Your traveling companion, mi'lady," Killian sneered coldly, "I hope you're as courteous with him as you have been with me." Emma stared up at him, outraged. Letting her know he was mad was one thing, but now he was just deliberately trying to hurt her. And it worked. With pain and anger warring in her chest, she felt like she was going to be sick and suddenly she couldn't wait to get out of Oz. Trying to keep her face blank, Emma stayed silent, ignoring him as she bent down to pick up the man and place him inside a covered wheelbarrow so that she could move him to where the opening to the hat was, still a ways away. "Emma, I'm sorry," Killian said after a short moment, regret filling his voice as he reached down and tried to help her.

Emma shot in front of the Munchkin, guarding the unconscious man from Killian's grasp. "I don't need your help," she hissed, blinking back tears and refusing to look at him as she heaved the man into the covered wheelbarrow by herself.

"I didn't mean it," Killian pleaded somberly, his hand brushing across her back.

"Just go back to the room," Emma snapped, flinching away from him. She couldn't stand him touching her right now. "I'll see you when I get back," she muttered under her breath, not caring if he could hear her or not, and started to push the wheelbarrow toward the portal opening.

She walked toward the center tower in the Emerald City. While she had tried not to get too involved in all the politics of Oz, she knew the building was important and housed some of Oz's most important people. The portal opening was behind one of the green curtains that lined the entryway. Once she left here, she would gladly never have to see the color green again. As she walked, she knew Killian hadn't listened her and had kept walking behind her, his eyes practically boring holes in to the back of her head. And as much as she was upset right now, she loved him for not just leaving her be. Not that she would admit that right now, to him or herself.

When she came to the farthest curtain, situated discreetly underneath an awning so dark, you almost had to squint to notice it, Emma propped the wheelbarrow against the wall, taking a moment to gather her bearings. The fluttering in her stomach almost became painful as the realization that she was really leaving Killian here hit her with full force. It would be fine, she would just be gone for a day, and then she would come back. Nothing was going to happen. This was the right thing to do. Reassurances were flying like mantras through her head. What was she even going to say to him? She was suppose to be mad at him, and she still was, though mostly hurt, and could still feel him standing behind her. Her pride was yelling at her to just walk through the portal without a backwards glance, but…

Killian decided to make the decision for her. She was spun around and he crashed his lips to her before she could protest, not that she ever would, though. His mouth was fierce and relentless against hers, conveying the words she knew he couldn't say, and it left her breathless. She was briefly reminded of the way she had kissed him the night of her ball, when she wasn't sure what was going to happen to them, but she pushed the thoughts back as far as possible. Nothing was going to happen. Killian reluctantly pulled away, breathing heavily as he murmured against her lips, "Please don't hate me."

Emma kept her forehead resting against his, her hand brushing through the hair on the back of his head, not wanting to let him go just yet. "Like you're hating me for leaving right now," she whispered back, doing her best to keep her bottom lip from trembling.

"I could never hate you," Killian replied, his voice so quiet she could barely hear him. Minutes ago, she was so hurt she couldn't even look at him, and now he was making her feel like absolute mush. This man was going to be the death of her. She had to leave now or she wasn't going to leave at all.

"I'll be back, I promise," Emma vowed, leaning in to kiss him lightly one more time. Trying to lighten the mood, she wryly quipped, "Don't get into too much trouble."

Killian let out a small chuckle, a tiny smile gracing his face, but it was half-hearted at best. "I wouldn't dare," he said.

Emma pulled away from him, and with his help, she lowered the unconscious Munchkin from the wheelbarrow, slinging him over her back to carry through. She looked back at Killian one last time to find out he was already watching her. His face remained impassive, though she guessed he was feeling anything but. She opened her mouth fractionally but quickly closed it. 'I love you' was on the tip of her tongue, and how she wanted him to know how much she did, but it took all of her will power to refrain. It was something they had never spoken to each other before and she hated that fact more than ever at that moment. Too many things had been going unsaid between them and she didn't know how much longer she could take it, but there was nothing she could do about it now. She loved him, with everything she had, and deep down, she knew he loved her too, but there was still that part of him that belonged to revenge. She wanted Killian Jones _and_ Hook, not just one or the other. So instead, with glossy eyes, she reached over to him and placed her hand over his heart, hoping that one day she would finally get to be the owner of it, before turning back around and stepping through the green curtain.

The second she was through the portal, she was surrounded by roaring flames. Emma flinched backwards, coughing and confused, the flames surrounding her like her nightmare. Her home was being destroyed by and sucked into by roaring flames, the heat sizzling her skin. It couldn't be happening. It couldn't be real. She looked ahead of her where the hat should be and saw her father standing before her with the hat in his hands and his jaw hanging slightly open, looking stunned.

"Dad?" Emma had to yell over the roar of the fire to be heard, her voice filled with fear and worry.

"Emma?" Charming yelled back, the flabbergasted look still on his face. He shook his head and then glanced down at the passed out Munchkin beside her. "Where's Hook?" he demanded, his brows furrowed confusedly, panting.

Emma flinched when a flame flung up beside her. "He's-"

"Later," Charming interjected, sensing her distress. He thrust the hat into her hands and pushed her toward the door, "Get out of here."

Standing her ground, Emma implored, "What's going on?" Her heart faltered in her chest. Where was her mother? Her mother should be here.

"Grumpy," Charming called across their disintegrating home, ignoring her protests altogether, "Take Emma."

Her father quickly strode toward all the other guards who were trying to subdue the flames and move as much people and stuff out as quick as possible. "Dad!" Emma bellowed hysterically, trying to follow him.

"You heard him," Grumpy roared authoritatively, gripping her arm tightly and stopping her from moving any further. He pulled her back toward the exit, "let's go."

"No," Emma whispered to herself. The heart. Regina's father's heart was still upstairs in her room. She couldn't leave it here. That was her and Killian's only leverage left against Regina. "No," Emma repeated to him, finally finding her voice. She tried pulling away from him, "There's something I have to get."

Grumpy didn't even flinch at any of her attempts. "Whatever it is, it's not more important than your life," he growled.

"It is," Emma begged, almost sobbing. It was Killian's life. He had to let go of her. "Please just stay here or wait outside," she bargained pleadingly, "it won't take me long."

Cleary displeased, Grumpy begrudgingly conceded, ordering, "Hurry," before letting her go. She passed him the man she had brought with her, and immediately felt guilty about bringing him. His life was in danger now and he had absolutely no idea. Grumpy muttered a "who is this" but she ran off without answering. She kept her hands gripped around the hat, and with her, though; there was no way she was letting it out of her sight, it was her only way back to Killian. Dodging falling beams and growing infernos, she finally made her way to the room. Thankfully, the fire hadn't done much damage in there yet, and she easily flew under her bed until she found the locked box containing the heart. Realizing she wouldn't be able to carry both the box and the hat, she pricked her finger and let her blood drop onto the enchanted box. It soon popped open and she hurriedly grabbed the heart and placed it inside one of the loose pockets inside of her cloak.

Emma sprinted from her room, coughing roughly now as the smoke started to effect her, before she heard a cracking above her and barely managed to move before the falling beam fell completely over her. She let out a cry as it still managed to fall against her arm, pinning her momentarily to the ground. Shielding the hat, her arm was licked in flames as she heaved the beam off of her. Her arm felt heated and sizzled, and she almost wanted to slap herself when her first thought was _Killian is going to be so mad_. There were more important things to worry about, like getting out of there. Emma hobbled her way downstairs and saw Grumpy waiting for her by the door, looking alarmed and anxious.

"Let's go," Emma motioned for Grumpy to follow her as she caught up to him but suddenly froze, seeing a figure step straight into her path across the hallway. Realization slapped her across the face. No, no, _no_. It couldn't be. She knew him. _"It seems my clumsiness has gotten the best of you" _ The words echoed in her head. It was the same man from her ball. The one that had run into her. And now that he was standing in a wake of flames, she could see that he also had another identity. It was _him_. The man who had starred in her recurring nightmare. The one that destroyed everything she loved. She would never forget those eyes, the ones that seemed to shoot fear straight into her soul. "It's him," she said, her voice faltering as horror filled her. She was going to be sick.

"Who?" Grumpy asked as he shook her gently, studying her with concern now.

Emma kept her eyes on the man. She couldn't breath or move. It was a living nightmare. Her dream always ended with everyone dying and she couldn't let that happen now. Apparently, she was not as significant to him as he was to her. He casually took a few steps forward, a smirk on his face. "It's your lucky day, princess. One of my colleagues said I'm not allowed to touch you," he rotated something in his hand and a black, hooded creature suddenly flew down beside him with an echoing cry, leaving a ringing in Emma's ears. With an excited flick of his eyebrows, he looked directly at Grumpy, "but him – "

After another flick of his wrist, the black, hooded figure moved straight for Grumpy at high speed. Determination filling her, Emma deftly used her magic to form a globe like shield around them, much like she had with the mermaids in Neverland, and the creature rebounded off of it with a piercing wail before retreating swiftly out of the burning castle. What the hell was that thing? The man tensed and looked shocked. "No," he whispered. Staring at Emma with dread filled eyes, he snarled, "_you_."

Emma was more than confused. So it was only after she used her magic that he seemed wary of her? And who the hell was this colleague who seemed to be protecting her? "Who are you?" Emma demanded, pushing back all fear. She was a princess. She was true love incarnate. She was the _Savior_. This was who she was. And she would stop him if it was the last thing she did.

The man didn't say anything, only stared menacingly and hatefully at her before he swiftly turned his body and disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

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A/N: Hope you all liked it! Please review and thanks again :)

**Next Chapter Summary**: Emma receives shocking news; someone unexpected asks to go back to Oz with her, but when she tries to make her way back there, she dreads what she might find.


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